


Dead Until Evenfall

by Hyperionova



Category: EXO, KaiHun - Fandom, Sekai - Fandom
Genre: Love Triangle, M/M, Supernatural - Freeform, Werewolf, vampire, wolfau
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-26
Updated: 2017-12-18
Packaged: 2018-05-03 12:42:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 43
Words: 234,767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5291279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hyperionova/pseuds/Hyperionova
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>All that Sehun ever longed for were a life to live, air that he could breathe, and a heart that would beat. Instead, he gets immortality and a chance to prove his worth to his father by eradicating their timeless enemy from the land which once belonged to the Vampires. When he is sent to rip the Werewolves' undying accord from within, he is obstructed by the packs' First Alpha and his brother. But he soon comprehends that he does not need to make much of an effort to annihilate the Werewolf population there. All that he has to do was to get the First Alpha's attention and the brothers to hate each other. No sane Werewolf would accept a relationship between a Vampire and Werewolf. Without a just First Alpha, the packs will be weakened and debilitated. But will Sehun be able to do the job without falling completely for the First Alpha? And will he be spared by the merciless brother who aims on ripping Sehun's head off his body from the first minute they meet?</p>
          </blockquote>





	1. Foreword

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All that Sehun ever longed for were a life to live, air that he could breathe, and a heart that would beat. Instead, he gets immortality and a chance to prove his worth to his father by eradicating their timeless enemy from the land which once belonged to the Vampires. When he is sent to rip the Werewolves' undying accord from within, he is obstructed by the packs' First Alpha and his brother. But he soon comprehends that he does not need to make much of an effort to annihilate the Werewolf population there. All that he has to do was to get the First Alpha's attention and the brothers to hate each other. No sane Werewolf would accept a relationship between a Vampire and Werewolf. Without a just First Alpha, the packs will be weakened and debilitated. But will Sehun be able to do the job without falling completely for the First Alpha? And will he be spared by the merciless brother who aims on ripping Sehun's head off his body from the first minute they meet?

**[Trailer 1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7QkcPS622k)**     **[Trailer 2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gba1tvD8THQ)**

_**He is the prince of all Vampire clans, the son of the Count himself. He is the leader of all Werewolf packs, a fair and just First Alpha. He is the rightful heir presumptive of all Werewolves, a merciless Berserker. An eternal lifetime of rivalry and vying. Foes by nature. Brothers by soul. Lovers by heart.** _

**Warning** : Heavy smut. Knotting. Knotting means pain. Vampire x Werewolf smut.

I will not promise that any of the smut will be gentle. You're warned. (no dub-con/non-con, don't worry)

 

 

* * *

 

**Oh Sehun Age: 18 Actual Age: 76**

As hard as he tries to be cruel and heartless, he fails miserably every single time. When he enrolls into Jackson High School, his only intention was to earn the trust of the Werewolves that roamed the cold, small, remote town, so that with the excuse of peace, he could get rid of them. Not once had he imagined to have the undeniable animal attraction for the boy he has come to destroy. Vampires are pristine, elegant, if plainly said, perfect. Werewolves were... everything else.

 

 

**Kim Jongin Age: 18**

Even if he were born a few seconds after his brother and is supposed to be the heir to succeed his brother, but luck plays well on his side when he is chosen by the packs to be their First Alpha. A benevolent and fair leader. The only thing he has yet to fix is his lukewarm relationship with his brother. He would rather build a peaceful relationship with the Vampires than go to war with them. Under the attempt, he is completely smitten by the new Vampire in town.

 

 

**Kim Kai Age: 18**

As far as he's concerned, the Werewolves do not need a lame and lenient Alpha. They need someone who can destruct everything that opposes them without having to think about twice. And all that his younger brother do is overthink and sometimes, he doesn't think at all. For instance, trusting a good-for-nothing bloodsucker. While his brother takes after their mother, a common lycan, Kai takes after his father, a Berserker. Which explains his aggression in many ways.

 

 

_Additional Charaters_

**Do Kyungsoo Age: 17**  The shy wolf who runs behind the Kim brothers.

 **Park Chanyeol Age: 18**  Just your average human being who befriends Sehun in school. But is later caught up in the supernatural mess.

 **Krystal Jung Age: 19**  Kai's girlfriend. 

OCs:  **Adrian, Vance.**

** **

 

_For a very short second, Sehun thought that his heart had managed a beat. The anger, the uncontrollable anger he saw in Kai's eyes and heard in his growl took him aback._

_"Stop it, Kai!" Jongin shoved him back, keeping himself firm between Sehun and his brother. "Snap the fuck out!"_

_Kai lurched forward again before he was blocked by Jongin. "You're gonna fucking defend that leech?!"_

_"Better him than you! Don't make me hurt you, Kai."_

_Kai froze for a moment as he stared at Jongin with a baffled look. "You'll... hurt me? You? I will have your head ripped off before you could even get a claw on me, Jongin." his eyes darted past Jongin's shoulder to pierce through Sehun again. His face was consumed with vexation and eyes slurring aggression. For a moment, he looked like a murderer. "You have my word." he spat at Jongin. "He will die in my hands."_

_"Over my dead body." he gave Kai another shove, sending him staggering back._

_"As you wish." he snarled before turning on his heel._


	2. One

There's no right or wrong way to tell a story. Vampires and Werewolves were natural enemies. In most tales they competed for prey, while in the others, Werewolves existed to protect humans from Vampires, but presently, some acknowledged that there was an ancient feud between the two factions that had continued through the centuries. However, they had become nothing but a legend, folklore characters. A myth. Be that as it may,  these two great enemies were the most powerful viers the supernatural world could see, and they were not known to have any other natural predators. No other would be better to stop a Vampire than a Werewolf. And... who were better to stop a Werewolf than a Vampire?

Sehun gripped the steering wheel of his silver Aston Martin Vanquish as the wipers swooshed before him, rushing the rain droplet, snapping the line to his thoughts. 

Pulling the car into the secluded driveway, Sehun ducked his head to peer at the house. His father had said that it will be well furnished, but Sehun was not expecting it to be this big and lavish even on the outside. Pulling over, he unfastened the belt and leaned slumped back on the seat, gazing out the side window. It was still pouring. But even in this rain, he could smell the pungent stench of the Werewolves that possibly roamed the area. Buttoning his long black coat, Sehun lifted the collars high and exited the car. As soon as he leapt up the doorsteps, the front door was pushed open and a boy stood, wearing a smile that revealed his set of pearls. "Mr Oh." he chimed as Sehun came to stand under the thin ledge of the veranda's roof and flipped his slightly drenched hair back from his face. The boy was the helper Sehun's dad had promised him. He must be one of the very few Vampires who were still allowed to remain in this backwater town, oppressed by the Werewolves.

Shoving past the boy, Sehun entered the house and froze to glance around the white and black interior. It looked like a hotel, not a home. Sehun was not sure where home was anymore for that he never felt like he had belonged anywhere. He turned and stopped at the decorative full length mirror by the stairs. His stomach clenched. His pale reflection stared at him with the hard-cold look in its eyes. Sehun's breath was as lifeless as a burial chamber. "What's your name?" he asked the boy who was looming in the back, watching him with intent like he had never seen another Vampire before. Sehun's voice came out cold and echoed like a deep sepulchre.

"Luhan." he muttered, still smiling. "I've cleared up your bedroom in case you'd want to...  _rest_."

Sehun scoffed, smirking and turned to face him. "When will it stop raining?"

"Uhm... I can't tell. It's inconsistent."

Sighing, Sehun walked over to the living hall. "Do you go to Jackson High as well?"

"No. I've graduated."

Sehun arched a brow. "Why are you still  _here_ , then?"

"What do you mean, Mr Oh?"

"First of all, drop the Mr Oh. I'm Sehun. Call me Sehun."

A shy smile tugged at Luhan's lips. "Okay, Sehun."

"And why are you still sticking around in this place?"

"This is... my home, isn't it?"

Sehun turned his face away, dragging a hand over the top of the couch. "I thought it was the dogs' home now."

Luhan remained mum.

"You don't have to be here round-the-clock. You can come by when I call you for help."

"Alright...  _Sehun_. I.. stocked the basement with bloodbags. You... do bloodbags, right?"

"I do both bloodbags and fresh." Sehun shrugged. "I'm going to need you to help me with something."

"Anything. Your father had strictly ordered us to make sure your stay here is well accommodated."

"I need every bit of information you could get on the Werewolves."

Luhan's eyes widened. "What for?"

"Just do as I say." he sighed and started for the stairs. 

 

* * *

 

The minute Sehun's Aston Martin pulled into the school's parking lot, all eyes turned to the only scintillating vehicle in the car. Clenching his jaw, Sehun turned the engine off and rubbed his temples before running his fingers through his ivory blonde hair. He felt like he was being suffocated from the minute he drove into town. It was a small town and everyone probably knew everyone. And even in this dark, gloomy, wet day, the fucking car was able to attract every bit of attention. It was beyond vexating to have people stare at him like he was some kind of alien. Technically speaking, he was. Heaving in a thick breath, Sehun stepped out of the car and slammed the door shut behind him. Well, he here was. Back on high school grounds after 14 years. The gapes and whispers were known to him. While some talked about his unearthly perfect hair, others talked about his sheet pale complexion. All that Sehun would want them to talk about was how huge his fangs were when they pierced through their fucking veins.

Tugging at his jacket, he kept his head held high and his expression nonchalant. His arrogant mien was probably going to get him into trouble but he was definitely not going to be the underdog for the high school jerks. For God's sake, Sehun sat on the top of the food chain. As he crossed the parking lot, he was stared and thrown whispers at, and he heard all of them of course. It wa the first day. So most of them involved 'Who is he?', 'The fuck is that?', and 'Damn.'

He walked down the hall toward to the office. Upon receiving his schedule, Sehun stared at the staff and her frizzly red hair. "What?" she asked, irked.

Shaking his head, Sehun shrugged. "Where is classroom 10?"

"Get to your locker first, kid."

"I know that. But I asked you where classroom 10A is."

The staff's brows furrowed into a scowl. "First day of school and already giving the attitude?"

Sehun scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Fine." he pocketed the schedule and stormed out of the office. The moment he burst out of the office, he was blocked by a student. A tall, lean one. 

"Oops. Sorry." he grinned and stepped aside with a dramatic gesture, holding his arm out. "New kid?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I'm sure you'll need a guide, then. Hold on. I just need to hand this paper in." he hurried into the office and returned before Sehun could even recline his offer. "So, where are you from? Oh, my name's Chanyeol." he blurted out, ushering Sehun into the hallway.

"Miami." Sehun lied, trying to focus on reaching the locke,  but instead he could feel every pair of eyes upon him. 

"Miami?! What the  _hell_ did you move here for?!" he exclaimed. "Oh, hold on. Where's your locker?"

"N67."

"The other way then." he beamed, pulling Sehun's arm to turn around. The hallway seemed to go forever, the shiny white tile floor loomed in front of him. The whispers of his soon-to-be classmates closed in around him, bounding over the closed wooden doors of classes and stark off white cement walls. He startled as each metal locker creaked open or slammed shut like the doors of prison punishing him. "I know us Jackson people can be a little harsh and rough, but we're friendly to those who are friendly." he patted on Sehun's shoulder and kept on rambling about the school clubs.

_God, will this guy shut the fuck up..._

Sehun's guts knotted out of the sudden when he caught the whiff of that wet, disgusting, sweaty, dog fur. It almost made him sick as green. Glancing around, he spotted three boys glaring at him, leaning against the lockers. Sehun doubted that even if any Vampire kid went to school here, he would hang out someplace where the wolves lurked.

"I never asked what your name is!" Chanyeol yelped, dragging Sehun's attention back.

"Sehun." he breathed out, averting his eyes from the Werewolves.

"Sehun. Well, great to meet you." he held a hand out but when Sehun didn't budge, he grabbed and shook Sehun's hand himself. It had been a long while since Sehun had been engaged with a human like this. "Hey, here's your locker."

"Thanks."

"So, if you need anything else..."

Sehun worked with his locker, trying to ignore Chanyeol, but in the end, he nodded. "I just need to know where 10A is."

"Oh. Straight ahead, turn right." he smiled.

"Alright..." Sehun trailed off when his nose stung with the foul wet dog stench again. He loured over Chanyeol's shoulder.

That moment, Sehun felt his breath seize. Both the guys who strutted through the hallway looked exactly identical. Except for the hair and style of clothes. Luhan said that the Werewolves were being led by the Kim brothers. His eyes widened a little as he read the two of them and slowly lowered his head, for the first time, when they passed him. Both of them glared at him, but one's scowl could almost burn Sehun's nonexistent soul. He had another female Werewolf in his arm. His hair was wild, sticking all over the place and he was wearing a grey t-shirt with a black leather jacket. And then Sehun's eyes flitted over to the other twin who wore a red-black checkered shirt and hair, swept neatly, but still in a rugged, brooding way. His dark, wolf eyes glowered at Sehun even when he had walked by.

"New bloodsucker in town." scoffed the brother in the leather jacket.  _Bloodsucker..._ Asshole. Sehun turned to his locker with his attention still cast on the brothers. One of them was the Alpha. Hopefully, not the asshole.

And that one was what Sehun needed to destroy.

* * *

He kept his gaze straight, chin up and jaw locked. It all felt weird. Being back in high school. There was a silver of trepidation in the pit of his belly. He had never felt nervous in a long while. But from the second he had seen the twins, he had drowned in a pool of anxiety. Screw that. As dangerous as those twins were, they surely knew better than to provoke a Vampire. But one thing was for sure. Sehun was definitely outnumbered here.

The teacher had a short ponytail and a pair of glasses. The sweater and vest mismatched the brown pants he wore. Well, he looked like a typical 20th Century World History teacher. The entire class seemed like a commotion, girls giggling and boys guffawing while watching something on their phones. Sehun wished he could shove a gobstopper down every single one of his classmate-to-bes' throat. Sure, he was still a blooming adult in the starting point of manhood. But it had been so many years that he had gotten used to the raging teen hormones. Rummaging through his heap of papers and textbooks on the desk, the teacher looked up at Sehun who stood at the entrance of the classroom. "Yes?"

"Uh." Sehun dropped his gaze for a moment and stepped in.

"New student?"

"Yes."

The teacher straightened up and grinned at him. "Class. This is a new transfer student."

Sehun turned to face the class and his heart jumped to his neck when he spotted the twins at the back, smirking at him. Both wore somewhat the same smug smile. But the rough, rugged one's smirk was slightly harsher. It was as if he were staring a lamb drowning in an ocean full of sharks.

"Please introduce yourself."

Sehun grit his teeth and cast his eyes to the calmer brother who sat next to the evil twin. "I'm... Sehun." he paused himself as a sudden sob rose in his throat with the guy's eyes staring at him. He had some sort of enticing sheen in his gaze which made Sehun shudder. He was not glaring anymore. He was watching Sehun with the same angle of confusion now. It took Sehun two seconds to memorize every bit of that brooding, lithe figure. He leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest and still kept his calm wolf eyes slowly devouring Sehun's wonder-filled eyes, trying to understand them. "I... come from Miami."

The rude twin scoffed loud enough for the whole class to hear. "That's some tan you got there for someone who's from Miami." he mocked under his breath without looking at Sehun who was paler than white.

Clenching his jaw, Sehun glowered at him. It did not matter if he were the God of all Werewolves, Sehun will not lower his head for his nonsensical remarks.

"Take your jibes elsewhere, please, Kai. Take your seat, Sehun. Oh and call me Mr Han." said the teacher and with a nod of his head, Sehun plodded over to the empty desk two desks before the slightly composed twin's. Apparently if the evil one were called Kai, then thanks to Luhan's information, the slightly nice one had to be Jongin. Sehun smiled to himself, settling his books on the desk. He could almost feel Jongin's eyes on his nape. Jongin. The First Alpha of the Werewolves. The very person Sehun had come here to annihilate.

"Bloodsucker. Fuckin' leech." Kai whispered sotto voce, but Sehun could hear him as if he had spat right in his ear. Wincing, he glanced back to toss Kai a forewarning look, but all that Kai did as a reply was stick his middle finger out at him. Sehun slowly turned and faced Jongin. For a very short second, their eyes locked before Jongin smirked and Sehun looked away. Had his heart been beating, it would have skipped some beats at that atrociously handsome smirk. What the heck...

"Alright, class. Settle down." Mr Han clapped the teacher's desk. "Good morning, everyone."

Sehun heard all except Kai and a fat guy at the back respond to Mr Han's greetings.

"So, I know that your brains are a little rusty since we've only went through the chapter last week." Mr Han rolled his eyes as he picked up the whiteboard marker. "But before we go into the Soviets, let's refresh a bit. Can someone tell me..." he began to scribble on the whiteboard. "The sort of state Saint Petersburg was in which was a key constituent in the rise of the Soviets?"

Sehun stared at the teacher who looked downhearted when no hand rose.

Mr Han licked his lips and nodded. "Okay. Can someone at least tell me what Saint Petersburg was called in Russia?"

Snorting a little, Sehun raised his hand. Mr Han looked at him with surprise and smiled. "Well, Petrograd... And there was a dual power system. A provisional government and the Petrograd Soviets."

"That is right." he added the key words onto the whiteboard and Sehun heard Jongin sigh out a 'wow'. "Now how could there be two governments?"

Sehun did not bother to even raise his hand since none of this nincompoops came to school to actually study anyway. "The Petrograd Soviets of course cannot establish laws, but they can convince people in Saint Petersburg through propagandas and posters and stuff. The provisional government lost its support when it decided to continue the war for the sake of their alliances, specifically France since Russia was indebted to her, which was a big mistake. Meanwhile, Lenin posed an opportunity for them to get out of the war. And the provisional government also delayed elections. So this increased the support for the Petrograd Soviets."

Mr Han looked astonished. "That is by far the only explanation I've received in this class. Well done, Sehun. That was absolutely right." he grinned. Well, Sehun had 76 years to learn a lot of stuff. To say the least, Sehun was not proud about being able to answer a cheap question in a class full of dimwits. But he had to persuade Jongin that he was not just some blood sucking Vampire. He was more than that. He was capable of making an alliance with the Werewolves. "Now back to the case at hand. We learned this a couple of days back, so can you list the factors that caused the Cold War?"

Sehun looked around the class, wearing an unamused expression. Heaving a sigh, he answered the question. "Differences of principles would be the main strand. The conflict itself was due to the differences of ideology and fundamental between the communist states and the capitalist or liberal-democratic states. In this case, US and USSR respectively. Then there were Stalin's foreign policies and he aimed for the advantage of the military situation to strengthen Russian influence in Europe."

"It is nice to have at least one student respond to the questions." he sighed. "But that is correct. Have you studied History before?"

Only for six decades or something. "Yes." Sehun replied nonchalantly.

"Wonderful." he was, without a doubt, happy. Glad even.

"Smart bloodsucker." Kai's words stung Sehun's ears. "That's rare."

"Shh." he was hushed by Jongin.

"Having fun back there, Jongin?!" Mr Han screeched and Jongin groaned. "Did you even do your reading for today?!"

"Wha... God." Jongin shot Kai a glare and faced the teacher again. "I... didn't."

"I figured." Mr Han replicated Jongin's tone. "So which side was to blame?"

"Kai?"

"I meant in the Cold War!"

Sehun suppressed a grin and kept his eyes on Jongin who was pouting, frowning at the teacher. "I... guess the Soviets."

"Why?"

"Because they're Russians?" Kai was the one who guessed, shrugging and Jongin scowled harder at his brother.

"You're never going to graduate this year if you keep taking this as a joke!"

"It can be argued." Sehun cut in.

"Sorry?" Mr Han's attention was diverted to him at once.

"It can be argued. No one can just point the finger at one party. US had its motives and the Soviets, theirs. While US wanted to rollback communism, the USSR wanted to expand the sphere of communism especially in the far east. Truman had his intentions as well as said in the Yalta conference."

"True."

"Well, the new kid made an impression. Yay." scoffed the student that was sitting before Sehun. Good. Now Sehun was famous.

"Cute." Jongin hissed in a breath, but Sehun heard all too clearly. He was not sure what he was referring to, but it made him nervous for some odd reason. Was it because he was supposed to get all of the Werewolf clans turn against the good brother? Why could it not be that asshole one?!

"Now, for the next two weeks, you will be working in pairs for a presentation. Your title must be an holistic approach. Do something out of the ordinary. Don't just talk about how the Korean War was the first proxy war which was a turning point in the Cold War, that's boring. Something interesting." he grabbed the bucket from the floor by his desk and slammed it on a student's desk. "Pass this around. There are 18 of you and there are 9 numbers in here. So those who get the same number will be paired together."

Sehun blinked. Jesus Christ. This was the most perfect opportunity ever. He was not praying for it, but hoping was a close alternative. Please be it Jongin. Sehun needed a way to get into the Werewolf circle by hook or by crook.

"Anyone but the ball of butter lumps back there would do for me." Kai commented when the bucket reached him. "I got a nine."

"Okay, Kai. Pass it around." said Mr Han and Kai handed the bucket to Jongin.

"I got a four." he said and a girl raised her hand, waving frantically.

Fuck.

Scowling sourly, Sehun dunked his hand into the bucket when it was passed over. When he pulled the folded paper out, all eyes turned to him. "Well, I suppose your partner has to be the luckiest one." Mr Han chimed.

When Sehun unfolded the paper, he blinked at it twice and crumpled it. "Nine."

"Fuck no!" Kai snapped.

"Cut it out, Kai." Mr Han warned him. "How ironic. My worst student paired with my soon-to-be best student. Good luck." Sehun kept his cold gaze as he passed the bucket to the front. Worst student. Wow. Sehun could possibly imagine how unintelligent Kai was. Once everyone had gotten their numbers, Mr Han ushered them to get into their groups and Sehun sat still in his seat, unwilling to even get up and face Kai. This was that 'I hate you from the moment I met you' kinda feeling. You know, the sort of irritation you feel for someone on the first day of school and you never want to be friends with them no matter what?

While everyone moved, Sehun and Kai remained in their chairs.

"Kai, move your rear." Mr Han squawked.

Kai jolted up wildly, banging the chair and desk before he reluctantly dragged his feet and chair to Sehun's desk. "Sup, leech?"

"Sup, dog?" Sehun flung back and Kai smirked, flumping into his chair and stretched his legs out, leaning back as much as he could.

"What brings you here, huh?"

"I came here to study." Sehun flipped the book open.

Kai sniffed and ran his fingers through his messy hair before peeling his leather jacket off. His grey v-neck t-shirt clung onto his lean body like a fur. The tattoos on his arm held Sehun's attention for a minute. They looked like ancient wordings. Sehun did not know which one. Kai reeked of cigarette smoke along with the wet dog stench which had Sehun cringing on the inside. "Is that just it?"

"That's just it." he sighed. "Can we talk about the project now?"

Kai's smug smile widened and he leaned in, settling his arms on the desk. "Don't you find it hilarious? Werewolf and bloodsucker trying to cooperate for a school project?"

Sehun rolled his eyes and glanced over to Jongin who was laughing a little with the girl before he cast Sehun a look. Quickly averting his gaze, Sehun bit his lip. "I was thinking of a comparison between the US and USSR's incentives for their involvement in the Korean Conflict."

"Sure. Whatever." Kai shot up out of the sudden and grabbed his jacket.

"Where are you going?"

"None of your damn business, hemo-gobbler."

"When are we suppsoed to discuss this, then, furface?"

With a shrug and a smirk, Kai strutted out of the classroom without even bothering to say a word to the teacher. Grimacing hard, Sehun sat there, alone, without a partner, which was utterly embarrassing. A moment passed and he was slowly caving. The urge to sink his fangs into all of their necks was real as heck. Not because of thirst. But for fun.

When the bell rang, he did not move. All these movements and noises were horrible. It had been a long while since he had heard this many cacophonies at once.

"Welcome to Jackson." the monotonous voice was suddenly clamorous and Sehun looked up at Jongin and his half smile.

"Uh... uh.. thank you." he rose to his feet and tried to smile back, but failed.

"Don't mind my brother. He's a jerk to everyone."

Sehun waited until the classroom was empty to reply. "We are... enemies by nature."

"Nah. I don't really see why we should bother to fight when there's nothing to fight about."

Sehun stared into his eyes. His dark, alluring eyes. His lips were full and plush, very kissable. What the fuck... Shaking the thought away, Sehun nodded. "I'm not here to fight anyway."

"I know." he chuckled. "I'm Jongin." he extended a hand and Sehun hesitated for a second before taking it. The warmth stung his dead cold palm and he noticed the wince in Jongin's face as they shook their hands.

"Sehun."

"Yeah. I know." he beamed.

"And... you're the First Alpha, I've heard."

Jongin looked surprised. "How did you..."

"I have my resources."

"Well, yes, I guess I am. So... uhm. See you in History.. tomorrow?"

"Yeah." Sehun bowed his head once and took a step back. "See you... tomorrow."

"Oh God. Don't be afraid." he laughed. Afraid? Since when had Vampires been afraid of these disgusting wolves?! But Jongin did not seem disgusting although he did have this effluvium smell of wet dogs just as any other Werewolf. "I won't bite so long as you don't." Jongin winked with a smirk, which was somewhat contrasting to Kai's before he stormed out of the classroom. Sucking in a shaky breath, Sehun dropped onto the chair and buried his face in his palms. 

Actually, this was not as bad. Jongin and Kai probably lived in the same house. So Sehun could drop by with the excuse of the project.

* * *

This was proving to be much more tedious than what Sehun had initially expected. These covert advances were ratifying the fact that he was getting absolutely nowhere. Well, he would have if the damn jock slash wolf brothers had showed up after their first encounter. They had gone AWOL for about three days now and Sehun was growing even more restless each time he entered the History class and did not find Jongin in there. He was not sure if he were relieved that Kai wasn’t there, but he certainly was not anticipating on meeting him anytime sooner. He was wasting his time here, sitting in these classes for precisely no merit or gain.

As he made his way out of the classroom after an hour of the teacher’s useless rambling about algebra and calculus, he kept his face crumpled, brows furrowed into an irked frown. He was no longer the shiny new kid anymore. All it took was three days and now he was just as any other freak shows that preferred loneliness over hanging out with the jumped up, pretentious and toffee-nosed overweening teenagers whose hormones were raging that they had to make out in every corner of the school compound. They disgusted him most of the time. The rest, they just amused and entertained him. They were completely oblivious to the fact that predators roamed in the midst of them. Then there were the irritating Werewolves who gave him the stink eye whenever he passed them as if they were ready to rip his head off if he sneezed. They did not intimidate him. They annoyed him with their high and mighty bullshit. Just as much as Jongin’s brother annoyed him. No matter what these wolves thought, they were—indubitably—an inferior species when compared to the Vampires. This was not even their home. They had stolen it. They had gone against their words. These dogs should not expect any mercy when they went down. Sehun knew what he was up against. He knew that without a doubt, so long these Werewolves stay united, they would not fall. And that was exactly what Sehun had to alter. Now he understood that Jongin was lenient. This would promise him faith and trust. He needed them to step into the wolf circle. He needed to befriend the First Alpha at all costs.

“Sehun!” Chanyeol’s cry reiterated through the hallway and Sehun kept his eyes straight, picking up the pace of his strides. Any faster, he might have pulled on a show by dashing across the hallway with the speed favoured by his vampirism. It was bad enough that he was getting this unwanted attention from Chanyeol. To add to that agony, Sehun shared almost all classes with him except English Literature and History. “Wait up, will you?!” he caught up to Sehun and grabbed Sehun’s arm to halt him. Sehun freed his arm and looked up at the taller with knotted brows. Chanyeol only beamed a toothy grin, forever lit up like a Christmas tree.

“What is it?”

“You gonna go out to grab some lunch now?”

“No. I’m actually going home.”

“Oh. So you’re off now?”

“I believe so.”

“Great.” He began to rub the back of his neck. “Are you liking the school so far?”

“Hm.” He turned on his heel, starting for the parking lot and Chanyeol tagged along. Sehun glanced over at him and scanned his posh clothing. It was plain to see that Chanyeol was well-off on monetary terms. He was definitely one of the rich kids in school. So Sehun did not see why Chanyeol was always going stag. He hung out with himself even if he were on good terms with basically everyone. Sehun rolled the sleeves of his black shirt and flipped his hair back as he exited the school’s hallway.

“Have you applied to any college yet?” asked Chanyeol.

“No.”

“No?! Are you planning to stay here? Because I know that most of us are planning to leave Jackson for good.”

Sehun came to a stop and raised a brow at Chanyeol. “Most of them? How about the Kims?”

Chanyeol’s eyes widened. “The Kims? Why the sudden interest?”

“I don’t know.” He murmured. “They’re pretty famous around here.”

“More like infamous.” He snickered. “People like them because they’re—well—infamous. They think they control the school.” He rolled his eyes. “I’m not sure if you noticed, but they pretty much love to blow their own trumpets.”

“I’ve noticed.” He bit his lip. “They haven’t been in school for a couple of days.”

“Yeah. They just disappear out of the sudden all the time and they don’t even get shit for it. The principal’s a biased dickhead.”

“Hm.” Sehun averted his gaze for a moment.

“They’re essentially show-offs.”

“Are they wealthy?”

“Not exactly. They just have the charisma to attract everyone.” But the again the school was filled with Werewolves. That might explain the support the twins were getting.

Sehun stiffened for a moment before asking, “Hey, do you know where they live?”

“Who? The brothers?”

“Yes.” Luhan had only vaguely given a direction of the Kim residence but Sehun could not get him to bring him to the place because he was forbidden to step onto that ground. For whatever reason, Sehun did not bother to ask.

Chanyeol snorted. “Everyone knows where they live.”

“Great.” He grabbed hold of Chanyeol’s arm and heard Chanyeol hiss. “We’re going there right now.”

“What?! Why?!” he grunted out as Sehun hauled him to his car.

“Because I have to talk to Kai. He’s my History project partner.”

“No… No one goes to his house!”

“Well, we’ll be the firsts. Get in.” he ushered Chanyeol to get into the car.

“Uh… Sehun.” He frowned.

“Come on, Chanyeol. Do me a favour. I really don’t know the way.”

Chanyeol looked conflicted for a moment, and then he sighed before climbing into the Aston Martin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sehun had guessed right. The house was located in the forest—one that he had never seen before—with hundreds of trees and plants barricading it, but it was not as dense from the inside as it looked on the out. He pulled the car over before the house and scoured the area. A farm house was located an acre away from the house. It looked abandoned. “You’re coming?”

Chanyeol was gaping at the house and slowly shook his head. He looked like he had seen a ghost. “You go ahead.” He climbed down and Sehun blinked before following after him. “I’m going back.”

“Wait, you’re leaving?”

“Yeah. I’m not going to stick around. It’s creepy here.”

“How will you go back?”

“Don’t worry about me.” He waved him off, but seemed a little disappointed as he started to strut away with his bag slung over his shoulder.

“Are you sure?”

Chanyeol did not bother to reply as he hurried away. Straightening his shirt, Sehun started for the house.

The forest itself reeked of Werewolves. For a moment, it made Sehun’s stomach clench. Sucking in a sigh, he proceeded to the house. As soon as he raised his fist to knock, the door was yanked open and he almost jumped when Kai got the door, scowling. Sehun froze and scanned the shirtless body and toned chest. And then he noticed the pushed back hair. No, it was not Kai. It was Jongin. Immediately a smile stretched his lips and Jongin’s scowl faded as he began to mirror Sehun’s skimming grin. “It’s you.” Said Jongin, smirking now.

“Were you… expecting me?”

“No.” he sniggered. “I thought I smelled a lee—uh… Vampire.” he scratched the back of his head and Sehun seized the chance to catch a glimpse of Jongin’s contracted biceps. Shit.

He dropped his gaze, gnawing on his lip. “I see. I’m sorry if I’m intruding anything.”

“No, not at all… Do you… want to… come in?”

Sehun looked up and blinked. “In? Am I allowed to?”

“No one’s home.” He assured with a smug smile. “Besides, there are no rules that say Vampires can’t step into our houses. We live in perfect harmony here.”

Perfect harmony. Yeah, right.

“It’s just that I heard that some of the Vampires are not forbidden?”

“The ones who have broken the rules, yes. It’s good enough we’ve pardoned them. So are you comin’ in or not?”

“Yeah.” Sehun nodded and Jongin stepped aside to let him in. “I must admit that I’m surprised. I was not expecting you to welcome me.”

Jongin kept mum but his smile said it all.

Sehun had to look away, again, to avoid that piercing gaze. Jongin’s body was pristine, bronzed and unbelievably fit. He was not the good boy type, but he was not the bad boy type either. His brother, however, was definitely the bad boy type. It was refreshing to see Jongin piercing-free and tattoo-free and he did not smell of cigarette smoke. For a Werewolf, Jongin was alright.

“What brings you about?” he asked, strutting past Sehun in his brown sweatpants.

“Uhm… I have your ignorant brother for a project partner, remember? Sorry, not sorry.”

Jongin laughed. “Ah. You actually care about the History project? How old are you?”

“18.”

“Your real age.”

Sehun smirked. “Possibly not older than your great grandfather.”

“Oh gross!” he burst into laughter. “When you put it that way, it sounds scary as hell.”

Shrugging, Sehun glanced around the house. It was a decent house. A little too casual. But comfortable. If it weren’t for the dog stench, Sehun might have found this house comfortable. “Point is, I take my school seriously. No matter how many times I return to it.”

“Hm.” Jongin obviously was not buying it, but he let it slip. “So you’re here to see Kai.”

“I believe so.” Sehun lied. “But he’s not here?”

“Nope.” He jerked his thumb over his own shoulder. “Can I get you something to drink? Something that doesn’t require me to punch a hole through my veins?”

Sehun smiled, even if it were meant to be an insult. “A beer would do.”

Jongin bowed his head and headed to the kitchen before Sehun silently followed behind. He could barely take his eyes off Jongin’s tanned back as the Werewolf grabbed a beer bottle from the fridge. “Here.” He handed the bottle after uncapping it and Sehun deliberately curled his fingers around Jongin’s as he accepted the bottle. Jongin bit his lip as he withdrew his hand. “I’m not sure if you could tell… but I’m not that guy, you know.”

Sehun’s heart jumped a little and raised a brow at Jongin. “Uh… what?”

“The arrogant Alpha that Vampires preconceive. I’m the nice kind of wolf.” He scoffed, shaking his head and took a sip of his own beer.

“I can tell.” Sehun stared at the mouth of the bottle.

“So, I’m okay if I’m friends with a Vampire. It’ll be nice to have at least one ally. And you come from Miami?”

Sehun shook his head. “Couldn’t you tell?”

“Well, if you say Miami, who am I to argue otherwise?” he smirked and Sehun felt his belly boiling acid. “Why are you here?” this time, his tone was serious as he leaned his back against the edge of the kitchen counter.

“I… heard that this was once our ancestral ground.”

Jongin’s expression changed at once and he began to stare at Sehun. God, if the guy could put on a shirt, it wouldn’t be so distracting! “So?”

“I just wanted to stay here for some months. See how things are here.”

Sehun could tell that Jongin wasn’t buying that either, but again he chose to not to push any further. Instead, he took another gulp of his beer. “You’re the only Vampire left in the school, though. You must feel pretty special.”

“Honestly, I don’t. I feel like I’ll be eaten at any time.”

Jongin scoffed. “Don’t worry. I won’t let them near you.”

They fell quiet for a moment before Sehun asked, “Do they actually listen to every one of your orders?”

“That’s the point of an Alpha, right? Same reason you guys have a Count and a Prince. To lead. And for your followers to listen.”

“Hm.” He couldn’t possibly imagine what Jongin would do if he knew he were talking to the Count’s son.

“Everyone listens except…”

“Except your brother?”

“Yeah.” He sighed and shrugged at Sehun. “He…” he stopped himself and shook his head.

“What?”

Jongin laughed again. That rough, sensual laugh which tickled Sehun from head to toe. “I don’t know why, but I feel like I could ramble and blurt everything out to you.”

Sehun could feel the blood rising to his ice cold cheeks. Before he could reply, he noticed Jongin stiffening before his nose stung with the fresh miasma of fur. “Is someone coming?”

Jongin’s brows furrowed into a frown. “Yeah. Well, your project partner’s back.” He settled the bottle down and hurried to the backdoor. Sehun tagged behind him and as soon as they were outside, standing on the fresh, green lawn of grass, Sehun spotted Kai emerging out of the trees, laughing and giggling with his girlfriend fawning herself all over him. There was another Werewolf, shorter and black-haired but he looked a little small to be a Werewolf. Kai was wearing nothing but a pair of sweatpants, but unlike Jongin’s body, his was even toned. A swirl of a tattoo reached up to the bottom part of his abs, stopping right the v-lines of his waist. The silver chain around his neck was in contrast with his bronze skin. His arm was tattooed and his hair was as wild as ever. He was like a rowdy version of Jongin.

He came to a sudden stop and so did his girlfriend as their eyes landed on Sehun. “Well, is bloodsucker visiting day?” Kai asked.

“He’s here to talk about your History project, Kai.” said Jongin.

“And you let him in?”

“He’s our classmate.”

“He’s a Vampire.”

“So?”

Kai shook his head, grimacing at Jongin. “And you wonder why I call you a pathetic Alpha?” he snorted. “Come on, Krystal.”

He didn’t spare Sehun even a glance as he lewdly pulled Krystal into the house with his hand grabbing her ass. Sehun winced and rolled his eyes. “Who is this, Jongin?” asked the small, petite wolf.

“Kyungsoo, this is Sehun. Sehun, Kyungsoo.”

“Hi.” Sehun smiled but Kyungsoo looked too intimidated to even manage a smile. Or he simply did not want to smile. Either way, Sehun did not care. “Hey, maybe I should leave.”

“Yeah.” Jongin sighed, turning to face him. “Maybe you should. We’ll be back in school tomorrow.” He ushered Sehun back into the house. When they reached the front door, Sehun faced him again. “Hey, look. I’m… I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah.” He stepped out. “And let your brother know how much of a jerk he is.”

“I’ll do that.” He smirked.

“Who’s… older?”

“Kai is older. He’s also a Berserker. Which explains the aggression.” He breathed out another sigh.

“Berserker.” Sehun muttered under his breath and before he could say anything more, a car pulled up at the loam driveway. A man exited the car before fetching a baby out of it.

Jongin was grinning at the man when Sehun turned to meet his eyes. “Hey, Adrian.” Jongin greeted.

The guy—Adrian—walked up to the doorstep and his baby stared at Sehun before smiling. It held a chubby hand out and Sehun took a step back. “Who’s this? New Vamp in town?” Adrian asked, flashing a subtle smile at Sehun.

“He’s my classmate.” Jongin replied and held his hands out. “Here’s my little pup.”

“Chachu!” the baby screeched and reached his hands out at once, giggling hard at Jongin.

“Sehun, this is my cousin’s husband, Adrian.”

Sehun was meeting too many new people. “Is it your kid, Adrian?” he asked the tall man whose age ranged between 25 and 30.

“Yes.” He did not seem rude. Maybe it was just Kai who was rude as fuck.

“He’s adorable.” The baby was already chewing, trying to bite Jongin’s cheek. When he turned to look at Adrian again, the man was staring, smiling at Jongin. “Do you and your wife live around here as well?”

Adrian shot him a baffled look before he looked away, gulping. “She’s not alive.” He muttered.

“Yeah. One of your fucking kind killed her.” Kai spat, pushing past Jongin. Sehun glared at him with rage filling his chest. And then he noticed Adrian’s apologizing look.

“I have to go.” Sehun said and turned on his heel. That was when a harsh grip on his wrist halted him. His wrist almost bled with Kai mercilessly gripping it. Scowling, Sehun pulled his wrist free. “What?”

“Don’t show up here again.”

“Then should I do the project with your grandma?!”

Kai blinked and stuttered for words. “We’ll… We’ll do it in school tomorrow.”

“Whatever that floats your boat.” He almost stuck his tongue out at Kai before he spun around and marched away from there.

* * *

 

He never showed up.

Kai nonchalantly told Sehun that he will meet him in the library after school when they bumped into each other in the school’s hallway.

And Kai—being the absolute prick he was—never showed up.

Sehun swung his leg on top of the other and pointlessly glared at the book shelf. He was not mad that his child of a project partner did not show up for the discussion, but more disappointed in himself that he actually expected Kai to be present. He could not care less about History, or school in general. But he needed a way to get closer to Jongin and right now, Kai was the only way. As much as he hated to be around Kai, he was the only mean by which Sehun can get into the circle of Werewolves, especially into their Alpha’s good books.

“You look brooding.” Chanyeol’s remark did not catch Sehun by surprise as he heard him coming from meters away. Sehun kept his face straight as Chanyeol took his seat across the table. “How was your visit to the Kims the other day?”

“Peachy.” Sehun muttered, averting his eyes again.

“Didn’t go well, huh? Told you. They live with their own circle and no one is allowed to enter. Explains why they’ve always hung out with the same group of friends since middle school. No one can penetrate that group.” He scoffed.

Sehun’s eyes narrowed. Own circle. No one was allowed to enter. And if Sehun wanted to, he needed to get through the Alpha. “We’ll see about that.” He murmured under his breath and rose to his feet.

“Oh, come on. Why do you keep running away from me?” Chanyeol groaned, frowning and Sehun finally smiled at him.

“You’re the one who should be running away from me, Chanyeol.” Sehun patted on his shoulder before heading out of the library. He could either go looking for Kai now with the hope of meeting Jongin as well, or he could just show up at their house again with the same excuse since he was now welcomed by the First Alpha.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was an endless night sky looking over the horizon. The sky’s hue slowly darkened as the sun set. Sehun’s heart was timeworn, exhausted and unable to feel love. He had never bothered to fall in love. He could never love like the others. No vampire could. He kept his eyes on the sky, gazing out the crystal glass of his lavish room. He wanted to know if he were capable of feeling love. Not the sort of love he had for his mother. But the sort of love he could hold for someone else. He had never given much thoughts about love.

He took a sip of the blood from the whiskey glass and swallowed it hard. The cold, metallic liquid soothed his throat before it dropped in his stomach, oppressing his hunger.

“Sehun?” Luhan peered into the bedroom with a soft smile etched on his lips. “I’m done. Can I… go home now?”

Sehun settled the glass on the desk and wiped his unstained fingers with a handkerchief. “Let me drop you.”

“No. That’s all right. I can manage.”

Sehun pulled his coat on nonetheless. “It’s okay. I’m going out anyway.”

“Are you… sure?” he asked, timidly.

“Ye—” he stopped himself when his phone buzzed in his jeans’ pocket. Fishing it out, he stared at the caller ID for a second before answering the call. “Father?”

He noticed Luhan wincing.

“You haven’t called. What have you been doing?” his father’s voice sounded stern and stiff as always.

“I’m working on it, father.”

“Be quicker. We’ve no time for dilly dallying.”

“Understood.”

 

* * *

 

The emptiness had always been there. It was as if a hole in his heart. A dark side of his destiny. He was the first born. He was a Berserker. By birth right, he should be the First Alpha. Kai would never forget the Choosing ceremony when he was betrayed by his own pack, by his own family and by his own brother who had shared the same womb as he. And he was never going to forgive Jongin for that. He knew that it was not his brother’s fault that the rest of the pack chose him to be the Alpha. But there were times when Kai wished that Jongin had never been born.

He was ousted by his own twin brother. He was the second best. And yet, he was the one who protected the Werewolves regardless of anything. He was the muscle that they needed and Jongin was the leader? How was that even fair? But over the couple of years, Kai had learnt to live with it. But not exactly accept it. He grew up thinking that one day he would be the Alpha all Werewolves would look up to. What would one do if their dream were suddenly crushed?

Rebel.

And that was what Kai did best. While his brother was goody-goody-two-shoes, he was too rebellious to care.

“It would be the best if we gather the pack and let them know.” He heard his father say as he entered the kitchen and found his parents at the dining table.

“What are you talking about?” Kai inquired expressionlessly, filling a glass with tap water.

His mother heaved a loud sigh. “Some of the wolves came by earlier this morning. They heard that there’s a new bloodsucker in town and they’re worried.”

Kai clenched his jaw. “Well, they do have the right to be worried with the leech population growing.” He shrugged and gulped down the cold water.

His father shifted in his chair and slightly inclined his head. “I must admit. We cannot just let a bloodsucker into our town without permission. It will only give them more boost to do whatever they want.” He said, frowning. “Jongin disagrees.”

Kai scoffed and snickered louder than he should have. “As expected from you doe-eyed, lovable son.”

“Kai, when will you stop acting like a child? We did not choose Jongin over you. The pack chose him. And you know why.” said his mother.

“Why? Because I follow my gut feelings? Because I rip off anyone’s head who even tries to threaten our people’s security? Because I seem like a better choice for a henchman rather than the leader?”

“You knew that your brother and Adrian had a chance of becoming the Alpha as well. You’ve lost in that. That is all. Kai, you did not lose in everything else. Who knows? Maybe if Adrian had not eloped with Lena, he might have become the Alpha, not Jongin. ”

“For one thing, I know that both Adrian and Jongin are too lame to be Alphas.”

Both his parents brows furrowed into a frown. “Let’s drop this.” His father insisted. “We need to hold a meeting.”

“Well, you’re talking to the wrong guy, in that case.” He tossed the glass into the sink and started for the stairs. “As you can see, I’m not exactly the Alpha material here.” He spat and hurried up the stairs.

He came to a halt at the top of the stairs before Lenz. The baby looked up at him with its lower lip jutted out. “Puyiu.” The baby cooed and brought its fist to its mouth to suck on it. It reached another hand out and grabbed Kai’s pants on one leg.

“Lenz. Come here.” Jongin called, rising to his feet from the stairs to the third floor. The baby turned his head and attention to Jongin at once and released Kai’s pants before crawling over to Jongin.

“You disagreed with dad about the new Vampire in town?” Kai asked as Jongin lifted the baby from the floor.

“Yes, I did. Do you have a problem with that?” he sounded annoyed and vexed. He probably must have heard the conversation downstairs.

“Yeah, I do have a problem with that Jongin.”

“Puchoo choo!” the baby scolded Kai with its forefinger stuck out at him when he neared Jongin.

“That’s it, Lenz. Show him who’s the boss.” Jongin smirked and kissed Lenz’s chubby cheek before the baby returned the kiss.

Kai grimaced and rolled his eyes. “When are you gonna stop hanging out with a baby seriously?”

“When you stop acting like a jerk.”

“I guess that’s never going to happen, then.” He retreated to the window. Leaning against the windowpane, he loured at the Stygian night sky. “When is Adrian coming back to get him?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Eh eeh!” Lenz mewled and Kai turned back to see the baby tugging at Jongin’s hair before it abruptly dropped its head on Jongin’s shoulder to rest. Jongin slowly made his way to stand by Kai, patting the baby’s back.

“He sure does like you.” Kai murmured, returning his focus to the forest outside. “Everyone likes you.”

“Everyone likes you, too. You just don’t care to like them back.”

“No one will choose me over you.” He shrugged as if to remain nonchalant but he could feel his own heart pounding.

They stayed silent for a moment with Lenz falling asleep against Jongin. “Kai… The mating season’s coming soon. Are you—”

“No. Not this year.”

“Krystal’s been waiting for too long.”

“I don’t care.”

Jongin let out a heavy breath. “You don’t think she’s your mate?”

Kai grit his teeth and turned to face Jongin with a scowl. “Well, I know who you’d want to mate with.”

Jongin blinked and raised a brow. “What are you talking about?”

Kai jerked his chin at the sleeping baby with a corner of his lips tugging into a smug smile. “Is it just the child you fancy or the father?”

“Huh? What the hell was that supposed to mean?”

“Oh come on, Jongin. Stop playing coy. You might be oblivious enough, but I can clearly see that Adrian has the hots for you. He fucking stares at you like he wants to fuck you regardless of time and place.”

“Shut your mouth, Kai. Don’t talk as you wish.” Jongin growled. “The next time you say something like that, I won’t hesitate to break your face.”

“Ooh! Feisty. What? Even talking about Adrian ruffles your feathers? That’s—“ he cut himself short when he noticed the light beaming through the forest before Sehun’s car was pulled up the driveway. “What the fuck is he doing here?”

* * *

 

It was not that Jongin simply loved the sight of Sehun or his beguiling scent of honeysuckle which lured him each and every time he was near Sehun. He certainly was not going to admit that he was totally captivated by the gently erotic fragrance that Sehun emitted or that Sehun was undeniably gorgeous, even for a Vampire. But he would, however, admit the fact that something about this particular boy made him feel things he had never felt before. Confusion, inner skirmish, tacit conflicts and Jongin repeatedly found himself lowering his battlement around Sehun. As a Werewolf—not to mention the epoch-making Alpha of the pack—Jongin should be sceptical about his enemies. The thing was… he was not sure if he even wanted to make an enemy of Sehun when they could be friends. And deep down, he knew that he wanted to be more than just friends. Which seemed impossible because Sehun was a Vampire after all. And as far as the history was written, no Vampire fell for a Werewolf. Sure, there were a handful of Werewolf folklores in which the wolves were lured by the bloodsuckers, utterly mesmerized enough to fall in love and leave their packs. But none of them ended on a positive note. All of them inevitably ended in a tragedy where the members of the Canidae family—the Werewolves—died, either by an attempt to transform themselves into an immortal Hybrid or simply by heartbreak. The Vampires could never love. Not a Werewolf at least. They did not have a heart. And yet, Jongin saw one in Sehun.

The moment he realized it was Sehun’s Aston Martin pulling up on their loam-washed driveway, his heart swelled. He saw him in Math today, but Sehun did not bother to spare him even a look. Jongin probably should not be too melodramatic about it, but he was disappointed when Sehun only halted Kai after class when they ran into each other in the hallway to talk about their History project. For some odd reason, it irked Jongin. Not the fact that Sehun was talking to Kai, but the fact that Kai was blowing him off. Not in that lewd sense, but as in ‘get-out-of-my-face’ sense. He understood Kai. No one could understand Kai completely. Jongin was the one who could understand Kai at least to a degree higher than others. They were identical, monozygotic twins. But their characters were worlds apart. Jongin had always considered himself to be laidback and solicitous. He was also altruistic in many ways. His family and pack came first. He took rational decisions, considering everyone’s plight and the consequences. According to Kai, that was lame and indecisive. Kai was everything that Jongin was not, to sum it up stark and wholly. But Jongin did not see any bad in him. He was an ass in every respect, but he was not a bad person. Just a rotten egg with a foul mouth. Honestly, he cannot be blamed for it, either. He was born that way. He was a Berserker and all that Berserkers did was… nothing nice or polite. Their father was quite a rampant menace as well before he was succeeded. So it might take years and a dash of miracle to tame Kai. For the time being, he was just being a hormonal teenager blooming on manhood and adulthood with some Berserker traits. If Jongin had the chance, he would gladly hand the First Alpha power over to Kai. But even he knew that his brother was incapable of leading a peaceful community for that he loved the thrill in fights and discord. Kai would do anything forbidden or illicit just for the fun of it. Jongin on the other hand, would rather do his best to keep his rogue brother out of trouble. Even if it meant he had to become Kai’s personal attitude police.

“He has some guts showing up here again and again.” Kai spat, glowering out the window as the Vanquish’s lights were turned off. Jongin gulped, patting on soundly sleeping Lenz’s back.

“Did you meet him after school?”

Kai blinked for a moment and shrugged. “I forgot.”

“That’s why he’s here, I presume.”

“He has some other agenda.” Kai pressed. “Come on! You seriously think a—God knows how old that bitch is—Vampire would give two flying fucks about a lame ass History project?”

“Maybe he wants to fit in. Perhaps he’s serious about living here, as a common person.”

“Well, piss off, pal. You’re just siding with him because you’d side with anyone that’s against me.”

“He’s not against you. Maybe he fancies you.” There was absolutely no way Jongin could have said that with a smile, so he settled for an extremely fake smirk.

Kai pinned him with a raging scowl. “Between us both, you know who likes it up the ass and in the mouth of another guy.”

“Oh, really? And that’s not you?”

“Not even if you have a ten inch junk made of gold and a flowery asshole that leads to Wonderland. I’m pretty straight and you know that. I guess it’s one of the many things we  _don’t_  share as twins. But the leech looks pretty ladylike to me.”

“Well, if that’s the case, then you should find the  _leech_  attractive, no? If you’re straight.”

Kai’s scowl deepened. “Even if I miraculously turn gay even for a second I wouldn’t think of shagging a fucking leech.”

“Who would you shag, then?”

“Oh, my very gay, baby brother, I’d shag you, of course. Come on. Is there anyone on this planet who looks as good as you?” Kai smirked.

“Piss off.” Jongin did not know how Kai could joke about things like this without reflecting on any of them.

Sehun got out of the car finally after quite long minutes and adjusted his coat as both Jongin and Kai watched him. “Wait here.” Jongin muttered as he started for his room to settle Lenz down in the cot which Adrian had brought in last month since Lenz had been spending quite some time here recently with his father travelling a lot for work purposes. Adrian was a respectable superintendent, the chief of the police department in the district. There could never be much going on in this small town, so Adrian was always away for assignments. He had only returned two years ago after eloping with Jongin and Kai’s cousin. She gave birth to a beautiful baby before she was… dead. Adrian had never showed his desolation and despair, but something told the people around him that he was still grieving. Especially with a child and no family to support him, Jongin’s family was glad to give him one.

“Pooh.” The baby puffed out, still sleeping and smacked his lips twice as Jongin laid him on his stomach in the cot. His baby foot vibrated as if he were kicking something. Smiling at Lenz, he gave the baby a last stroke on the back of his bald head before heading back out. Jongin was still cringing, reflecting on what Kai had just said. Even if Kai were joking, it did not seem one bit funny. He would not deny that he loved Lenz. A lot. He was a sucker for babies, that was all. It had nothing to do with Adrian or some prurient and lecherous intention he had for Adrian as Kai had claimed. He had never even seen Adrian in such light prior to this. It was unimaginable and truly immoral. But even if he knew that it wasn’t true, it tugged at his heartstrings. By this point, he really should not be bothered by anything that Kai comments on. It was his fault that he openly told his brother that he liked boys. He would never forget how supportive Kai was back then. That Kai, who hugged Jongin and comforted him after he had admitted to being gay, was gone. He was always a rotten egg. But a couple of years ago, he was also a really good brother. This Choosing ceremony was what changed it all and even now, Jongin wished that it had been Adrian, not him.

Kai was already downstairs, at the door when the doorbell rang. Jongin hurried down the steps just as Kai ripped the door open. Their parents rushed into the hallway, probably after smelling the laborious scent of a Vampire and Jongin shook his head to assure them it was all right. “Just a classmate.” He told them as he reached the bottom of the stairs and met with Sehun on the doorstep. His parents retreated back to the dining room with sceptical looks on their faces as Kai and Jongin stepped out of the house and closed the door behind them. It was a crisp night. The wind tickled and stroked the insides of Jongin’s thin t-shirt, ruffling his half dry hair.

“You seem to take hints quite well.” Kai scoffed at Sehun who could not be bothered to even frown. One of the many things that Jongin loved. Sehun was expressionless most of the time and when he did give an expression away, it was either annoyance or anger. But only one time did Jongin notice him flushing like a human when they had their little chat in the kitchen.

“I’m actually not here about History.” said Sehun in a tight voice. “I need to speak with you.” His eyes darted over to Jongin and for an instant, Jongin felt a pang to his heart. Those eyes glimmered like stars and although his skin was pale as snow, Sehun had pleasant hints of pink all over his face.

“Oh.” Kai raised a brow. “About what, then?”

Sehun glared at him. “I said I wanna talk to  _him_. Not you.”

Kai crossed his arms over his chest and threw Jongin a dubious look. “Go ahead.”

Jongin heaved a sigh and rubbed his temples before asking, “Sehun, do you wanna come in or should we go someplace else.”

“None of the above.” answered Kai rather rudely.

“No. Don’t bother. If he’s not gonna bugger off, then fine.” Sehun spat and took a step closer to Jongin. The honeysuckle-like scent swooned Jongin for a moment. “I was thinking that maybe there is a way for us to live in harmony. Both Vampires and Werewolves.”

“We already do.” said Jongin, frowning a little.

“Really? You have forced all Vampires to live at the outskirts of town. Isolated. You don’t allow them to have any job that would pay them enough to live prosperously. And you’re definitely hiding something if none of the Vampires here want to leave the town. You guys are living on top of the pyramid and oppressing us.”

“As we should.” interrupted Kai.

“Quiet, Kai.” Jongin hushed him. “Sorry, Sehun. But don’t you think this is a little too random to just show up at my doorstep and ask me of something so profound?”

“I just realized it today. That’s why. Your brother did not show up for the meeting because I’m a Vampire and according to him and every other Werewolf here—including you—think that we’re inferior and that you can push us around as you wish.”

Jongin could hear Sehun’s throat tightening as his chest heaved in anger and exasperation. Who knew, Sehun might even want to sink his fangs and drain Jongin out this instant. His eyes were ablaze and something had definitely ruffled his feathers. “Sehun, I understand where you’re coming from. But there isn’t much that I could do.” He said calmly, trying to soothe Sehun, but it was to no avail.

“Are you kidding me?!” Kai snapped. “You’re seriously explaining shit to him when he has the guts to just march up here and ask us to be fair when we’ve been more than just to his pathetic, blood-sucking assfaces with fangs?!”

That was what Jongin admired the most. Sehun’s audacity.

“What are you gonna do, then?” Sehun turned to Kai with fisted hands. “Infest me with your lice and ticks?”

Kai flipped then. He grabbed Sehun by his coat’s collars and shoved him back. “How ‘bout rip your Dracula head off?” he growled through his grit teeth, advancing forward.

“Hey!” Jongin rasped and put himself between Sehun and his brother before giving Kai a hard shove until the latter staggered back. “Fuck off, Kai.”

“No. Let him. I’d like to see what he can do with that dog claws of his.” Sehun challenged, snarling fairly himself. Kai lunged forward again only to be slammed back up the door by Jongin’s forceful push.

And that was when Kai lost it as his rock-like fist struck a side of Jongin’s face, sending him stumbling. For a moment, Jongin’s head spun in a whirlpool but he quickly recovered before jamming a fist into Kai’s face. He could hear a car pulling up before the house as he tumbled to the veranda’s floor with Kai in his arms, trying to bludgeon his face.

“Fucking God, stop!” Sehun screeched as he tried to pull Kai off Jongin.

Jongin could barely hear anything but the pound of his blood in the ears with Kai’s fist crashing his face repeatedly. But he snapped and grabbed Kai’s wrists before flipping him over until he was the one trapped under Jongin now. It was Kai’s face’s turn to taste the fist and the brutal punches. The last time he had had a fight like this with his brother was… two weeks back. He felt Sehun’s hands gripping his t-shirt by the shoulder but even a Vampire should think twice before trying to interfere when two top-class Werewolves were brawling. But then again, Sehun was one of a kind who didn’t seem to give a damn about anything.

Then he felt a pair of strong and firm hands clutching at his arms before he was yanked off Kai. Jongin was slammed against Sehun and the latter shuddered at the sudden contact but his arms came around Jongin’s waist to hold him back. For a very brief second, Jongin felt a stir in his loins with the adrenaline pumping through his veins. Adrian was scowling at him and only then did Jongin realize that it was Adrian who had torn him away from bleeding Kai’s face. Honestly, Adrian looked both angry and disappointed like a father who had found his sons wrestling. When Kai staggered to his feet and advanced for Jongin again, Adrian harshly yanked him back by the arm and clutched at Kai’s collars. “Try lifting your arms again and I’ll break them both for good.” he hissed at Kai. “Get inside.” He shoved Kai towards the door and Kai tossed Jongin and Sehun one final look of despise before he gushed into the house. Adrian let out an exasperated breath and latched his hands on the sides of his waist. “You were supposed to be an Alpha! Not a teenager with raging hormones and a damned urge to brawl with his brother in every argument!”

“Well, it was not my fault that you ran away and left the post to me, Chief.” Jongin spat with a mocking tone with even the insides of his cheeks hurting in agonizing pain.

“That’s your argument? Huh, Jongin? You’re gonna throw that back at my face?”

Jongin fell silent, but his chest expanded in vexation.

Adrian’s eyes darted over Jongin’s shoulder and only then did Jongin realize that Sehun still had his arms around his waist. As if he had heard Jongin’s thoughts, Sehun withdrew his arms and took a step back. “You have Vampire friends now?”

“It’s none of your concern, really.”

“Really.” Adrian repeated under his breath after a few seconds and shook his head. “Don’t be stupid and fight with Kai next time. He’s a Berserker. He could lose it at any moment.” he said and walked into the house, closing the door behind him. Jongin’s chest tightened. He had never spoken this way to Adrian before and neither had he fought this badly with Kai.

 

 

 

 

Sehun honestly did not know whether he should find this amusing or appalling. It was wonderful to see two Werewolves scrimmaging at his expense and he would not recline a good entertainment as such. But to see Jongin downhearted was depressing.

On his way here, he had learnt that not only Luhan, but all of the Vampires here lived at the outskirts. It maddened him beyond description. As their Prince, he should be able to do something for them. And now he knew that it was impossible since not even Jongin was willing to negotiate terms. Then so be it. If he had to weaken the entire Werewolf clan, then that was what he shall do.

As Adrian slammed the door shut, Sehun’s arms almost trembled from holding Jongin back for so long. For some odd reason, Adrian gave him the chills. The man looked tough, not bulky, but fit as a fiddle with a well-built body and broad shoulders. His brunette hair was cropped neatly on the sides and the last time Sehun saw him, he had his bangs low and wet but tonight, it was gelled up and spiked at the front like a smart businessman. If it weren’t for the gun in his holster, Sehun would have pegged him for a runway model. He looked around his late twenties. Sharp nose, tanned skin and slightly squared jawline. It was a good thing he was not the one Sehun was trying to befriend because that would have been difficult. Adrian was not a prat like Kai, but he surely did not look like he was gullible enough to trust a Vampire.

“Jongin?” he called when Jongin stood still, staring at his feet. Biting his lip, Sehun slid his fingers into Jongin’s palm with the intention to inspect his bruised knuckles but Jongin recoiled and pulled his hand away the second Sehun’s cold fingers touched his warm palm.

“Sorry.” He breathed out and walked heavily to the steps of the veranda before sinking down to sit on one of them. He buried his face in his hands and stayed that way.

Not for the first time, Sehun found himself to be staring at Jongin. Even under the moonlight, Jongin’s picturesque figure looked sumptuous. Sehun shook the lewd thought away. He was a Werewolf, for crying out loud! He silently took his seat beside Jongin and brushed his hand on Jongin’s nape. The latter’s head jolted up in a frenzy but Sehun did not take his hand off the back of Jongin’s neck.

Their eyes were locked for a minute as Jongin caught his breath. His face was beginning to bruise and discolour. Sehun’s fingers slid into Jongin’s hair above the nape and stayed in it. “I was not… expecting that. I’m sorry.” said Sehun. It was definitely what he was anticipating and hoping for, though. But Sehun’s guts twisted weirdly. He now knew that Jongin was kind enough to care for him. Or maybe he cared for everyone. Maybe he would have hit Kai even if it weren’t particularly Sehun. The thought somewhat disenchanted Sehun. He could use this for his own advantage. He could benefit from Jongin’s leniency and considering nature. However, it clenched his heart.

He removed his hand from Jongin’s hair and caressed the contusion on his cheekbone. Jongin averted his gaze, unlocking their eyes. He curled his hand around Sehun’s wrist to halt him. “Don’t.”

“Okay.” Sehun pulled his hand back and frowned. “You shouldn’t have fought him.”

“Yes, I should.” Jongin’s brows furrowed into a scowl.

“I’m sorry.”

“Stop apologizing. It wasn’t your fault.” His tone was still angry and he was still glowering at the world with his jaw locked.

“It was. I shouldn’t have provoked him. I was just… so mad. I just discovered how the Vampires live here and it doesn’t seem fair. Not one bit. This was our—”

“Please.” Jongin clenched his eyes. “It’s best if we don’t share anything.”

“Oh… okay.” Sehun turned his face away to hide his disappointment. “I’ll leave if you—”

“Do you want some beer?”

Sehun blinked when Jongin looked up at him with an interplay of confusion and exasperation surging in his face. “N-now?”

“Yes. Now. I could use some fucking break.”

“Don’t you think you should attend to your face first? It looks pretty damaged.”

Jongin let out a soft chuckle. “It’ll heal on its own before dawn. Wait here.” He rose to his feet and disappeared into the house.

Sehun waited patiently, wondering how this would turn out. Jongin did not want him to talk but he did not want him to leave as well. He bit his lip and straightened his shirt before he heard the door opening and closing again. He looked up at Jongin as he ensconced back in his place, holding out a bottle of beer.

Accepting it, Sehun took a sip of the beer and watched Jongin gulp down his own. He could barely take his eyes of Jongin’s bobbing Adam’s apple and outright stared at him. When Jongin realized Sehun was staring, his cheeks flushed, even darker than the bruises Kai had inflicted on him.

“We must seem quite pathetic to you right now.” Jongin snorted.

“Amusing actually.” Sehun gulped another mouthful of the beer.

“Right.” He snickered. “Not all Werewolves bicker like we do. We’re just brothers on bad terms at all times.”

“I figured.”

They sat in another silence before Jongin spoke again. “I’d really like to help you, Sehun. I hold nothing against your kind.”

“Seems like everyone else does. Even… Adrian, is it?”

Jongin nodded and kept mum for a minute. “You understand why, right? His wife was…” he trailed off and Sehun didn’t push him any further. He didn’t want to hear Jongin call his people murderous.

“You’re a nice person, Jongin. For a Werewolf, that is.” He smirked and Jongin rolled his eyes.

“And you’re not so bad yourself. I’d like… to get to know you better.”

Sehun felt a sudden lump choking him. “Me too.” He managed.

They drank in silence again.

Jongin’s smell struck Sehun dumb often. It was both enticing and disgusting. He could only deduce that Jongin’s scent was enticing and his Werewolf stench was disgusting. The former almost made him want to lean in and nuzzle his nose into the crook of Jongin’s neck.

God! What was he on about?!

“Are you okay?” Jongin asked after a moment.

Sehun rapidly blinked and nodded. “Yeah, why?”

“You look a little crossed.”

“Really?”

“Yes. All those wrinkles are showing.”

“I… I don’t have wrinkles!”

“You’re old.”

“What?! Wow! You’re an ass!”

“Of course. I’m Kai’s brother.”

“Whatever.” He faked a scowl. “I don’t have wrinkles.”

“Yeah, you do.” Jongin laughed and reached a hand out to rub his thumb on the corner of Sehun’s eye.

“Stop!”

“Oh look, they’re getting more prominent! I think they might turn into fangs at any given moment now.”

“Your Vampire banters are not funny!” he swatted Jongin’s hand off.

“They are. A little.” He shrugged.

Another silence.

But Sehun was burning from within. Something so trivial should not turn him on like this. But it did. Everything about Jongin did. He kept his eyes on Jongin as the man took another long sip of his beer. His cheek was smeared with bruise and Sehun fought the urge to stroke it. When he lost the battle, his hand automatically rose to Jongin’s cheek again and his fingertips skimmed the shape of the contusion. Jongin froze and he was just as breathless as Sehun was. “You better… take care of that.” Sehun whispered, looking into Jongin’s eyes. Jongin pressed his hand against the back of Sehun’s hand and leaned into the touch. The moment stood still between them and Sehun was not sure of what he was doing anymore. He liked it. He liked the heat Jongin was radiating. He even liked the ridiculous smell.

And of course, that was the door was opened and Adrian stepped out with his baby sleeping against his shoulder and chest. He scowled at them. Sehun jolted up to his feet at once and settled the beer bottle on the step.

“Are you leaving?” Jongin asked, getting to his feet as well with a reddened face. It felt amazing to even think that he had Jongin blushing. Sehun could laugh out of happiness right now. But at the same time, he felt miserable. What was he doing…

“Yes.” Adrian replied monotonously.

“I should leave as well.” Sehun said.

“Wait.” Jongin blurted out at Sehun and Adrian marched down the veranda without any other comment. As Adrian drove away, Sehun turned to face Jongin.

“He looks pissed.” He licked his lips.

“At me. Not you.” Jongin assured him. “Everyone has these high hopes for me that they often forget that I’m also a kid.” He shook his head.

“Well, you’re wiser than most people your age.”

“Of course you’d say that. You’re old enough to succeed my grandfather.” He smiled smugly.

“You’re lucky I’m not in the mood to taste some Werewolf blood tonight.”

“Oh that’s some crappy Vampire joke, babe.”

Sehun paused and glanced away with his stomach churning. Babe… The word sounded marvellous on Jongin’s tongue.

“Uh… I mean…” Jongin stuttered, rubbing the back of his neck.

“I should go. Looks like I’ve caused enough trouble for one night.” Sehun plunged his hands into his coat’s pockets and retreated towards his car.

“All right.” He sighed. “Hey, Sehun!”

“Yeah?”

“Are you going to the Welcome Party?”

“Welcome Party?”

Jongin smiled. “If you are… I’d be glad to take you. As a company, of course.”

“Uh… sure?”

His smile widened. Sehun honestly did not know just about how many times Jongin had been bludgeoned on the face that he seemed quite immune about it. “Okay, then.” He turned around, still scratching the back of his head and Sehun turned on his heel, smiling to himself. First, he needed to find out what the hell the Welcome Party was all about. Secondly, he was going to celebrate the fact that he had gotten into Jongin’s good books.

* * *

 

It was a world where nothing was entirely right and nothing was entirely wrong. Righteousness and degeneracy always trod on the thin line of decisions. Sehun knew the consequences of his every decision. Bad and good. He was clearly aware of the consequences he would have to face by fraternizing with Jongin—the biggest, perhaps not the ‘baddest’ wolf, but still very influential. He was fraternizing with the foe. Foe. Enemy.

There was no right or wrong way to tell the story.

Sehun kept his focus on the blathers of the Werewolves in the hallway, but held his eyes straight. He was certain that even the wolves were aware of the fact that he was listening. But they probably could not care less about one—very outnumbered—Vampire listening to their discussion over the ‘Jongin-Kai brawl last night’. One of them even said that Kai should have kicked Jongin’s ass. Something told Sehun that the younger circle of Werewolves heavily favoured Kai, the known rebel. All the people Kai hanged out with were in fact rebels. Even that girl who dropped by the school once in a while, his girlfriend. Sehun had learnt that her name was Krystal, but she didn’t school here anymore.

Anyway, he understood that news travelled fast among the wolves. He could use this for his advantage as well. He might need some rumour coverage for the downfall of Jongin, thus the ruination of the Werewolf accord.

But why did the former idea clenched Sehun’s stomach? His face pulled sourly at the thought of betraying Jongin. He was a nice guy. Werewolf or not, he was decent. Sure he was the leader of a supernatural clan but that didn’t make him any less of a boy who yearned for everything that… Sehun was longing for.

Everything that had happened last night was both desolating and gratifying. Sehun was glad that Jongin had stood against Kai. He was beyond satisfied to have had the brothers at each other’s throat. But at the same time, the moment when Jongin’s eyes were locked around his, when his hand was pressed against Jongin’s cheek, he had felt weak. This sort of animal attraction, he had never experienced before. Even since the first time he had met Jongin, he knew that it was going to be impossible for them to be enemies.

Sehun’s eyes darted to Kyungsoo who was at his locker, angrily rummaging through it. His head jolted up and he clenched his jaw, glowering at Sehun. Sehun had yet to figure out who Kyungsoo was to the twins, but he seemed pretty close to both Jongin and Kai since he was with them most of the time. And right now, he looked pissed at Sehun. Probably because he had heard about Sehun’s little visit to Jongin’s place last night and the drama that had followed. For some odd reason, Sehun felt like Kyungsoo was trying to be the neutral fence between Kai and Jongin. He was always there during lunch breaks, sitting between the brothers and changing the topic every time Kai was at variance with Jongin’s viewpoint.

He looked like he might snarl at Sehun as he walked past him. Sehun didn’t bother to lower his head because like hell he cared about what this tiny thought. He ripped his locker open and pretended to be scavenging for a book as he waited for the twins show up. Even if they were in contention all the time, they still went everywhere together. Probably because Kai was this right-hand-man or something. Jongin certainly didn’t look like he fancied attention that much. Sehun could relate to him on a spiritual level. Kai, on the other hand, was basically drowning in attention and he seemed to be liking it. Of course. He must have been pretty bumped when he didn’t get the crown.

Chanyeol showed up in the hallway with the Cheshire grin plastered on his mouth, backpack slung lazily over one shoulder with the Biology text book in his hand. Sehun heaved a sigh. He seriously did not want to be acquainted with humans. Too much problems. But out of all these people, Chanyeol was slightly… tolerable. It was weird, but he was seriously growing on Sehun. To say the least, he was nice. But nevertheless, he was a prey. A mousedeer in the den of a lion.  

Sehun constantly had to keep reminding himself that this place was not his home. Not yet. He should not grow too fond of this town and the people in it.

He almost smiled at Chanyeol but the latter stopped by Kyungsoo’s locker and leaned his side against one of the lockers. “Morning, Kyungsoo.” Chanyeol greeted with the sort of smirk Sehun had never seen him use before. He blinked and pretended as if he weren’t supernaturally eavesdropping with his supernatural superpowers. “So, you want to be friends with me at least now? Re-friend me, I mean.”

Kyungsoo slammed his locker shut and spat, “No.” before he strutted away, shoving past Chanyeol.

“Oh, come on, Kyungsoo! I didn’t bite your crayon on purpose! Plus, that was 12 years ago! Ah!” Chanyeol groaned as he spun around and met Sehun’s widened eyes which quickly reverted back to being ‘I-wasn’t-hearing-a-thing’. “He’s not my friend.” Chanyeol said as he walked over to Sehun.

“Hm.” Sehun licked his lips and closed his locker. “I figured. He doesn’t look like he likes you much.”

“He’s my neighbour, you know. It’s a pain every time I had to borrow some sugar or a couple of eggs because he hates my soul.”

“Why?” Sehun knew it had something to do with a little Chanyeol biting Kyungsoo’s crayon, but he asked anyway. To remain covert.

“It’s nothing. Besides, he has cooler friends now anyway.” He shook his head and lowered his gaze. “What do you have now?”

“History.” His eyes darted over Chanyeol’s shoulder and landed on Jongin who had walked into the school with his face free of bruises and contusions. He looked good as new, fresher than ever in his maroon fit shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbows and hair combed neatly. Sehun took the pleasure in staring at him for a moment before he snapped out of it, realizing that he was completely checking Jongin out. “I have to go.” He rasped and flashed a short smile at Chanyeol. “Oh and trust me. You’re pretty cool for a mortal.”

“Ouch!” Chanyeol laughed, clutching his chest. “Worst compliment, best insult ever.”

Sehun genuinely smiled and patted on Chanyeol’s arm. “See you in Math.” He blurted out and hurried past the taller. “Jongin!” he called, jogging after him, but Jongin kept on walking as if he did not hear Sehun’s cry. It was beyond difficult to refrain himself from using his blessed speed and strength, but he managed to catch up to Jongin pretty quick. “Hey?”

Jongin was grinning, sheepishly. He glanced over at Sehun and his smile almost threw Sehun off balance. “You have some guts, Sehun. Calling my name as if you own me with almost thirty wolves around you.”

Sehun didn’t know whether he should cringe or smile at the “As if you own me” part. But he settled for a shrug. “You wouldn’t let them rip my head off my body, right?”

Jongin’s bronze cheeks hinted pink and he came to a halt on his pace to turn and face Sehun properly. “So long I’m there. No one’s gonna lay a finger on you. I like to help old people.”

“Ass.” Sehun slammed his thick book against Jongin’s chest and the latter hissed before bursting into a sexy chuckle.  _Sexy_  chuckle. Jesus Fucking Christ. What was wrong with him…

“All eyes are on us.” He whispered and let out a breath of snicker. Sehun knew that all the Werewolves were glaring at him even without looking up at them.

“I know.” He sighed. “Do you wanna go someplace else after school?”

Jongin bit his lip, still smiling and nodded. “Sure. If you can handle my stench.”

Sehun almost choked on his spit. “You don’t… have a stench.” Blood filled his cheeks and he suddenly felt queasy. Jongin laughed it off as always.

“You should see your face every time one of us passes you by.”

“That doesn’t mean you stink. Some soap and dog shampoo should do the trick.” He smirked and Jongin shot him a ‘touché’ look. Sehun felt this happy bubbles gurgling in the pit of his stomach. He had said something impressive which had made Jongin laugh. He had no idea why, but he felt like a teenage girl squealing over her crush. “How is it for you, though? Do you find my… fragrance annoying as well?”

“Fragrance.” Jongin scoffed. “You’re so full of yourself, aren’t you?”

“King of the predators.” Sehun shrugged.

“Ah, that’s debatable, babe.”

Sehun gulped and Jongin’s smug smile was quickly replaced by a blush. “So… Do you?”

Jongin bowed his head. “I guess. It prickles my nose.”

Sehun frowned. “Oh. I’m sorry, then.”

“There’s this ridiculous superstition in our packs. When we smell someone of honeysuckle, it means that they’re of Sidhe.”

Arching a brow, Sehun coughed. “The Irish fairy?”

“Yeah. They’re not exactly nice people.”

“You think I’m not nice?”

“I mean you’re not supposed to be nice, are you?”

The school bell rang and Sehun’s ears drummed for a minute. “We should go to class.”

Jongin scratched the back of his head and led the way to the classroom. Sehun glanced up at the banner that hanged over the hallway and cocked his head a little. ‘BRING YOUR A-GAME’. Below the quote was ‘WELCOME PARTY 2015 MOVIE FRANCHISE’.

“Seriously? That’s the theme?!” Sehun rasped and Jongin looked at him in a daze. “The party.” He clarified.

“Oh. Yeah. It’s pretty lame. Guess what people are expecting for Jongin and I to be dressed up as.”

“Tweedledum and Tweedledee from Alice in Wonderland?”

“That obvious, huh?”

“Wouldn’t the evil stepsisters from Cinderella make more sense?”

“Hey! I’m not the evil one.”

“And you think Kai is?”

Jongin kept mum as they stopped before the class. He did not enter the class and leaned back on the wall next to the door before crossing his arms over his chest. Sehun totally ogled the biceps that stretched the tight sleeves of the maroon shirt. “Do you know the twins, Ahriman and Ahura Mazda legends?”

“You really shouldn’t ask a century year old Vampire if he knows anything. He probably would. The Zoroastrian mythology.”

Jongin smiled again. “So you’d know that they represent the good and evil.”

“You think you’re Ahura Mazda, then? The benevolent one?”

He snorted. “Somewhat. It’s just something my grandmother used to tell us because she said that she always saw… cruelty in Kai’s eyes. But he might just be a hormonal teenage wolf, you know. But he grew up listening to this myths and shit where he was always compared with the darker characters. He’s not evil. He just… wants to be evil.”

“Nah. He’s just evil.” Sehun scoffed and saw Jongin’s lips twitch into a smile. “We should go in.” he started for the door when Jongin caught his wrist. For a very short second, Sehun thought that his heart might have jumped. Jongin caught his eyes then as his hand gripped Sehun’s wrist.

“I don’t really know why, Sehun, but I just… I just really like talking to you. I know with all the odds and natural animosity, it will look ludicrous for us to be friends, but I would really like to give us a chance.”

Sehun was at a loss for words as his throat went dry. He felt so human when he was around Jongin. Weak, tiresome and extremely helpless. Jongin’s hand slipped from his wrist to Sehun’s hand. “I think… I would like that, too.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“When you look at the figure on page 42, you get an idea of how the party and the government worked. But to put it in simpler words, the Ordinary Party members elected local committees who then elected Regional Party groups who chose delegates to the National Party Congress. This congress, then elected a Central Committee, which then chose the leaders who sat in the Political Bureau which is the Politburo and decided matters of policy. They also elected Orgburo which supervised the administration of the party.” explained Mr Han as he drew a map on the whiteboard.

Sehun turned his head around to glance at the empty desk which belonged to Kai. He was absent and Sehun knew it probably had something to do with last night. Jongin stared at him for a brief second, biting on the end of his pencil and Sehun quickly turned around. He felt hot with Jongin’s eyes on the back of his neck at all times.

“Trotsky described the people who joined the party after Lenin’s death as radishes. Can someone tell me why?”

Sehun raised his hand to distract himself from Jongin’s piercing gaze. “Like radishes, those people who joined the party were red on the outside, a reference to communism, but they were in fact white on the inside.”

Mr Han flashed a satisfied grin and nodded. “Precisely. What were the main rules to join the party?”

“Working class and must have a knowledge about Marxism.”

The bell rang and in the split of a second, everyone jolted up from their seats and hurried out of the classroom as Mr Han called out on his hopes for good presentations next week. Of course, the presentation which Sehun was probably going to conduct alone because he had a good-for-nothing as a partner. “You wanna get some pizza, Sehun?” Jongin asked out of the blue when they were alone in the classroom as Sehun packed his bag, as slowly as he could manage.

“Was that supposed to be a trick question?” he smirked.

Jongin rolled his eyes. “God, I totally forgot that you like your lunch with lots of iron, plasma, platelets, that sort of thing right?”

“Preferably the AB neg type.”

“Okay. Then how about… the bookstore? I could use some of your century old knowledge in getting a good book on communism.”

“You’ve come to the right place, my friend.”

Jongin’s face lit up like Christmas. “Great! I just have to submit my assignment. I’ll meet you at the parking lot in a moment?”

“That’ll do fine with me.” Sehun mirrored his smile, maybe a tad shorter. Jongin scurried away at once and Sehun started for the parking lot.

When he exited the school, heading for the parking lot, Sehun spotted Kai on the hood of a sleek black SUV, dragging on a cigarette and puffing out polluting clouds of smoke. He was laughing menacingly with a couple of guys, running his fingers through his wild, messy hair. He wore a pair of black ripped jeans and a black v-neck t-shirt, showcasing his arm tattoos. It was as if seeing Jongin on the darker side of the world. Like in Hades’ underworld.

As they wove he way to his car, Kai’s eyes followed them and his laugh was traded for a brutal scowl. But before Sehun could scowl back just to irritate him, he were blocked by a group of thick jocks and Sehun blinked at them when he realized they were Werewolves. The parking lot was swarmed with people and Sehun knew that they were all watching him being cornered by five really huge football jocks. Only that they could transform into wolves any moment now and rip Sehun apart.

“Heyo, puppet.” One of them sniggered, advancing closer.

Typical high school bullies. With extra strength.

“I’ve got no time for this.” Sehun sighed, plunging his hands into his black fleece jacket. “So whatever that you’ve got to say, make it quick.”

The guy’s brows furrowed into a vicious lour. “Ooh. You’re so ballsy because Jongin’s got your back? He might be foolish enough to trust your fangs, but we’re not. And you should have known by now that you are a lowlife. None of us approve of you walking around like you own our asses.”

Sehun scoffed and snickered, flipping his hair back and out of his forehead. “Sorry. I guess I couldn’t give more than half a fuck about what you approve.”

That was the straw that broke the camel’s back when the jock shoved Sehun back, hard and mercilessly. Sehun did stumble back, but he was quick to recover. “You wanna put on a show here, bloodsucking bitch?!”

“Seriously?” Kai’s scoff reverberated across the parking lot and the jock turned to shoot him a frown. Kai lighted up another cigarette and threw him a humiliating grin. “Five against one scrawny kid? That’s a fair shit.”

Sehun was not sure if Kai were provoking this jock to beat the shit out of him right there or if he were actually insulting that guy. Either way, Sehun was not going to appreciate it. “Kai, he deserves it!”

They looked like they were friends, so Sehun was definitely not going to buy it if Kai were even actually trying to help him. “Fine, then.” He shrugged and looked away, dragging on his cigarette.

Sehun honestly wished that he could murder all these Werewolf boys right that instant, but there was an audience. Which meant he had to act as the helpless victim. Another one of the jocks jammed Sehun back. “Come on, leech. Bite me.” He challenged as the group guffawed.

Just when another advanced straight for a jab on Sehun’s face, Kai shoved him back and Sehun could not help but gape at him. “No one can bully him except me, you get it?” he spat at the boys who began to retreat. “Your Alpha gave you orders to not to provoke him.” He said under his breath, but loud enough for the Werewolves to hear. “I suggest you follow them. At least until you come of age.”

Come of age. Did that mean these boys had not reached maturity? So they technically weren’t Werewolves, but just boys with Werewolf rage running through their veins. God, it would have been so easy for Sehun if it actually were a fight. Probably that was why Kai stopped them?

The jocks left the parking lot at once and Kai turned around to face Sehun with an expressionless mien. “This doesn’t make us friends in case if you’re wondering.”

“I wasn’t.” Sehun retorted, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Good. Oh and I can see that you have my brother wrapped around your tiny finger. If I were you, I’d stay away from him.”

“You should really think twice before warning me about Jongin. I’m pretty sure I’ve buttoned down who’s the nice one and who’s the asshole.”

Kai smiled. “I’d stay away from him because I wouldn’t want him hurt or betrayed.”

Sehun’s face wilted at once and he stared at Kai vacantly.

“What’s the matter, Oh Sehun? Cat got your tongue?” his eyes shot past Sehun’s shoulder and his grin widened. Sehun knew that Jongin was approaching them. “You need to remember something, Sehun. If you have some sort of evil plan, I’m the one you need to get rid of first. Not Jongin. So, if I were you, I’d get to me first. But that’s gonna be difficult, isn’t it? Cause I’m not as gullible as my brother.”

“You guys are talking to each other now?” Jongin asked as he caught up to them. Kai tossed him a beam.

“Sure, brother. Sure.” He clapped a hand on his younger brother’s shoulder. Jongin’s expression remained sour. “I was just telling Sehun about Adrian.”

Sehun noticed how Jongin’s pulled that instant. “Kai, piss off.” Jongin hissed.

“No problem.” He winked at Sehun and began to brush past him. “Don’t worry, Jongin. I didn’t tell Sehun that you totally fancy Adrian’s cock up your tight ass! Or the fact that you have wet dreams about being Adrian’s personal boypussy!”

“Fuck yourself, Kai.”

“That’d be too hot to handle, baby bro!” he called back, laughing as he stormed into the school.

Sehun lowered his head with a frown crumpling his forehead. “Sehun?”

“Huh?” he looked up at Jongin in bafflement.

“Don’t… don’t… mind him. He’s just…” Jongin flushed pink as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Adrian is like a brother to me.”

“You shouldn’t explain anything to me, Jongin. It’s none of my business. Hey, can we do this some other time? I forgot that… I have somewhere to be. I have to skip the classes after the lunch break.”

“Oh.”

Sehun didn’t wait for a reply as he started for his car. He was hungry. He was  _angry_. He wanted to hunt. He wanted to sink his fangs into some hot neck. He wanted to get rid of Kai for good. And the only way he could do it was through Jongin. By Jongin’s hands.

* * *

 

They had been brothers. They had been friends. But now, they were nothing but next of kin, looming in the sphere of rivalry and abhorring aversion. Kai did not hate Jongin—of course not. But if he had the chance, he would bleed Jongin out until he begged for his mercy. That night was just a specimen of their strained relationship. They had had worse days. Worse fights. But what made that brawl the most appalling of all was the fact that it had been because of a bloodsucker. Because Jongin had sided with a fucking leech. And something told Kai that it would not be the last time.

“You think that the leech is up to something?” asked Kyungsoo rather expressionlessly and Kai scoffed, quaffing down a mouthful of the malt beer with his legs swung over the armrest and back leaned on the opposite armrest of the single couch.

“I’m surer than your mother when she had you, Kyungsoo.” He kept his eyes on the Lion King that was running on the TV. His favourite character of all times—Scar—was the only guy who made the most sense in the show. Of course, Kai could relate so much to the damned, downgraded brother. He knew Kyungsoo was staring at him with scrutiny and confusion. “What is it, Kyungsoo? You lookin’ for me to pat you on your head or something?”

Kyungsoo averted his gaze at once. “No. Why would you think that he is up to something?”

“Because, world-known-fact number one; Jongin’s the First Alpha. World-known-fact number two; no Jongin, no harmony among the wolves. World-known-fact number three; Jongin’s a gullible idiot. World-known-fact number four, bloodsuckers fancy themselves some discord among the Werewolves. And it looks like our little leech really likes hanging out with Jongin.”

“Maybe he just wants to be friends with him.”

“Shh shh.” He hushed him, pointing his finger at the TV before he took a sip of the malt beer. “It’s my favourite part.”

Kyungsoo grimaced as he watched the ‘Be Prepared’ number, face crumpling in detest. “Why are you even watching this?”

“This is an amazing production. Had always been my favourite.”

“It’s a… kids’ show.”

“Really?” he glanced over at Kyungsoo and smirked. “It’s a spectacular reference to the Nazi propaganda film about Nazi Germany 1934.”

“What?” his eyes widened.

“Triumph of the Will. The Nuremberg rally. Scar’s on the cliff, just like Hitler. Oh, and look at the beams of light around Scar! Those are basically like the Cathedral of Light in Hitler’s rallies.”

Kyungsoo was silent for a long while and when the song came to an end, he said, “I didn’t know you would bother about things like this.”

Kai shrugged, gulping down the sweet beer. “Still think it’s a kids’ show? Not to mention the fact that the whole production is based on Hamlet, which is a pretty bloody Shakespearean work. And God! The whole Hakuna Matata is just fucking Timon’s version of YOLO.”

For a moment, Kyungsoo was dead silent, but he was gaping at Kai as if he had seen some miracle. “I thought you were….”

“Stupid?” he snorted, dragging his palm up and down his shirtless chest. “That’s the idea, technically.”

“Kai… you were just lecturing me about the Lion King a minute ago… and you said something about Nazi Germany… I thought you sucked at History.”

“I’d rather people think of me as an ignorant bastard.” He shrugged.

“Wait, you’ve read Hamlet?!” he rasped and Kai couldn’t help but smirk. He had read every one of the Shakespearean works. But he was better off not admitting that he was a sucker for literature and History.

“Kai?” Krystal’s voice swayed its way into the living room and Kai dropped his head upside down to look at her before getting off the couch. He picked up the red and black shirt from the floor and pulled it on but didn’t bother to button it down. Krystal smiled and hurried to his side before draping her arms around his neck. “Guess what!” she chimed, pecking on Kai’s lips.

“You got into college.” Kai wasn’t even guessing. He straight away knew that she did get into the college of her dreams. Krystal’s eyes bulged out as her rosy lips stretched into a wild beam.

“God, how do you see through everyone?!”

Smiling smugly, he tilted his head to the side before brushing their lips together. Kyungsoo silently rose to his feet and left the room to give them some space. “All right.” He broke the kiss and flumped back on the couch to resume watching the Lion King.

“Kai.” she gasped. “Aren’t you even gonna pretend like you’re excited? Or… at least… upset?”

Kai looked up at her and raised a brow. “Upset?”

She heaved a sigh and settled on the armrest, taking Kai’s hand into her own. “We’re gonna… be apart. For more than three years.”

“So?”

Krystal blinked. “Are you being serious?”

“What are you aiming at, babe?”

“Us! I’m aiming at us! Kai… Oh, fine! I’ll ask it myself.” She shot up and crossed her arms over her chest. “When are you going to ask me?”

“Ask you what?” he muttered tiredly, keeping his eyes on Mufasa. There came the part Kai loved the most. Mufasa’s death.

“Kai! Can you at least act like you care for one minute?!”

Kai’s eyes rose to her and he snickered. “One minute.”

Krystal’s jaw dropped. “You… never had any plans to ask me to mate with you, have you?”

Kai stiffened but he kept his expression nonchalant. “Krystal.”

“So if I leave, you’re just gonna move on.” She looked both miserable and furious.

“Can we do this some other time?”

Her eyes remained widened as she gawked at Kai in disbelief. “What?”

“Mufasa’s gonna die.” He waved his hand at the TV.

“Asshole!” Krystal snapped and stormed out of the house with bloodshot eyes. Kai let out an exasperated breath and returned his gaze back to the TV screen only that his attention had gone wandering elsewhere. He had no idea why he had even agreed to date Krystal in the first place since she was never his type. He liked her. A lot. She was shit-hot. She almost had him reeling sometimes. And Kai surely would not deny that he wanted to sleep with her. But that was as far as it went. He wanted to sleep with her because she was hot. In the five months that they had been dating, they had never had a single full conversation. Kai always ended up in a loss of words to continue the conversation and out of boredom, he’d just kiss her, touch her as she liked. It had never been more than that and even he knew that Krystal deserved better.

“You handled that extraordinarily well.” Jongin’s sudden remark jolted Kai’s head up and he glanced over at his brother who was standing at the bottom of the stairs with the Oxford Advanced History textbook in his hand. Kai wanted to snort at him. Jongin was probably trying to impress the smartest kid in History now since Kai had never seen Jongin hanging around with books before. “And don’t tell me you did it because she deserves better.”

Kai raised and dropped his feet on the coffee table, lacing his hands on the back of his head with the shirt dangling over his shoulders. “You know me better than that, I think. I needed to get rid of her.”

Jongin’s eyebrows furrowed into a scowl. “You wouldn’t get anyone better than her, Kai.”

“And if I tell you that she’s not good enough?”

“Wow. What happened to you, seriously? I thought you really liked her.”

“And many people thought I liked peanut butter and jelly sandwich because that was what I brought to school every day back then. But in reality, it was because that was what I was offered.”

“You could have fooled around with someone who was looking for a jerk. She’s a nice girl.”

“Then you fuck her, mate with her, marry her or do whatever the shit you want. Oh wait, you don’t swing that way.” he clicked his tongue and noticed Jongin’s cheeks crimsoning, furiously. Kai sucked in a long breath and turned the TV off before walking over to Jongin. “She’s goin’ to college. So finally, good riddance.” He patted on Jongin’s shoulder and started for the stairs when Jongin’s phone let out a screeching cry. Jongin quickly fished his phone out and frowned at the screen. “Why do you look like our dead fucking grandmother is calling?”

Jongin answered the call, ignoring Kai’s remark. “Hello?— Sehun?!”

Kai blinked and without even thinking twice, he snatched the phone from Jongin.

“Kai!” Jongin hissed before Kai grabbed and twisted his wrists, slamming him against the wall. Tucking the phone between his ear and shoulder, Kai clasped another hand over Jongin’s mouth while gripping Jongin’s hands that were pinned onto the wall, above Jongin’s head. His brother stared at him with popped out eyes as Kai pinned him further, jamming his body against Jongin’s to hold him back, chest against chest—Kai’s bared and Jongin’s shirted. He pressed his thigh between Jongin’s legs to block him from giving him a knee in the nuts.

“What is it?” Kai muttered and Jongin was probably too taken aback to even protest and his moans were all muffled by Kai’s palm.

“Uhm… I’m looking for a…” the unfinished sentence was followed by a soft, embarrassed chuckle. “I wanted to get some new clothes. But I don’t know any store around the town that sells good stuff.”

Kai stifled a laugh and Jongin rolled his eyes. “You want a tour guide?”

“Essentially.”

“How did you even get my number?”

“Uh…” another of those embarrassed chuckles. “I did my research.”

“Where do you wanna meet?”

“I’m near this shop called ‘Loose ‘n’ Moose’.”

“Noted. Help’s on its way, sweetheart.” He hanged up and released Jongin before Jongin shoved him back, hard.

“You’re such a colossal ass.” He snatched his phone back and Kai broke into a laugh, noticing Jongin’s flushed face.

“Oh, baby brother. Don’t tell me you’re smitten by a leech.”

“That is absolutely none of your business. Even if I am—but I’m not—it does not concern you.” He spat and leapt up the stairs as Kai’s mocking smile faltered. His eyes narrowed into a scowl and his breath quickened. He couldn’t care less about Jongin’s demise, but he certainly was not going to let a leech win. He needed to know what Sehun was after and he needed to find it out fast.

 

* * *

 

“Hey!” Jongin yelped, jogging up to Sehun was stood by his silver Vanquish with the evening sky roofing above him. Sehun perked up and grinned as Jongin came to a halt and panted before quickly recovering. “Have I kept you waiting too long?”

“No.” he patted Jongin’s chest and straightened his coat as Jongin froze. He immediately retreated his hands and suppressed a smile. “Sorry if you were busy.”

“I wasn’t. It’s the weekend, anyway. I wasn’t doing anything productive.”

“You and your ass of a brother need to practice more to be better liars.” He smirked and noticed Jongin tensing. “Don’t worry. I knew it was Kai who spoke on the phone.”

Jongin pursed his lips and rubbed the back of his neck as usual—he did that whenever he was nervous or embarrassed. “How did you… know?”

“You two might have resembling… everything, but I think I’ve pretty much figured out what type of guy you are when compared to him.”

The corners of Jongin’s lips quirked up and ushered Sehun to walk. They took the pavements of the shop lots and Jongin tugged at his coat. “And… what type of guy am I?” his voice was barely louder than a whisper.

“Ask me again before the night ends.” Sehun shot him a look which could send anyone down to their knees. Jongin sucked in a shaky breath and bit his lip.

Smitten…

The word was very beautiful even when it came from Kai’s lips. Jongin had no idea how it worked, though. He had never been… smitten before. All that he did know was that Sehun made him feel things that he had never experienced. Even when he saw Sehun standing there, waiting for him, his breath stopped for a moment. His head constantly spun whenever he thought about Sehun.

“This store sells decent shirts.” Jongin said, stopping before a small shop.

Sehun smiled at him and pushed the door open. Jongin paused for a moment and stared at Sehun’s back before his eyes travelled lower to Sehun’s ass. He had to sink his teeth into his lower lip to refrain himself from letting out a lewd breath as his eyes raked that fleshy ass. “Are you coming?” Sehun called.

“Yeah.” He sighed and followed after him.

They silently spent a moment in the store as Sehun looked around. “What was Kai’s deal anyway?”

“Don’t mind him. He thinks everything’s funny.”

“It was funny.” Again, his smile had Jongin weakened.

 

 

 

 

“So the sun doesn’t burn you to ashes.” Jongin commented as they proceeded towards Sehun’s car after Sehun had purchased a grey shirt.

Sehun laughed. “Where do you people get such ideas from? You should have noticed that since no Vampire in this town have turned into ashes.”

“I just assumed they had some sort special pixie dust.” He smirked.

“Oh, so you’re just pulling my leg. Very funny.” He nudged his elbow into Jongin’s arm and they chortled. “Well, you guys have weird traditions. The mating thing. It creeps me out.”

“I think it’s… nice.” he gulped the lump in his throat when Sehun’s eyes darted over to his own.

“You do?” he arched a brow.

“I mean… I kinda dig the idea of being in love with just one person for the rest of your life.”

Sehun came to a stop on his pace and so did Jongin. He was mum for a stretch before he muttered, “That does seem… too good to be true.”

“Well, of course there are loop holes. For instance if your mate dies, you’re free from the soul bind, you know?”

“But you can only mate once.”

“We can only knot once. That counts as mating.”

“Knot?”

Jongin felt the blood rushing to his face and he bit his tongue so hard that he almost tasted his blood. “No. Forget that I mentioned it at all.”

“Okay… So you’re saying that you’re allowed to have sex with others, but only when you… knot, it counts as mating?”

“Precisely.”

“Oh. Have you mated yet?”

Jongin almost choked on his own breath. He honestly did not know how Sehun was so frank and straightforward. Like Kai. He shook his head with his ears heating up. “No…. No, Sehun.”

“Good.” He leaned forward and Jongin went completely still. Sehun’s lips brushed his own like a pair of cold feathers and Jongin’s chest tightened with unbelievable content. Sehun drew back with the slightest brush of his upper lip and Jongin’s lower lip. He smiled. Those lips that had just lightly kissed Jongin smiled.

Parting his lips to let out a heavy breath, Jongin brought his hands to Sehun’s face and held onto the sides before pressing their lips together. Sehun raised a hand to his chest and pinned it there as Jongin tilted his head to fit their lips better. It was just a chaste kiss.

He was kissing a Vampire.

Jongin only pressed his lips harder against Sehun’s upper lip, clenching eyes tighter before he broke the kiss but didn’t pull away. He stared into Sehun’s half lidded eyes that were fixated on his lips. “Tell me now. What kind of guy am I?”

Sehun smirked, retreating. He pulled away from Jongin and said, “I think I just answered your question.”

With that, he proceeded for his car as Jongin stood there, grinning like a complete fool.

 

* * *

 

“Kai!” his mother’s squawk was followed by a smack on his back. Kai jerked forward and hissed before turning his head around to glare at her.

“What, mom?!” he snarled, standing up from his seat on the steps of the veranda and his mother snatched the cigarette from his between his fingers before tossing it away.

“How many times have I told you to not to smoke?!”

“Oh, seriously?! You think you’re gonna forbid me from smoking?!”

“God! Where have you learnt this nasty habit from?!”

“Your mother. Grandma.”

His mother looked stumped for a second before she gave Kai’s temple another smack. “I don’t want to see you smoking ever again!”

“Mom, please. What you gonna do?” He leaned back on the wooden railings and pulled another cigarette out. But just when he stuck it between his lips, it was rudely pulled out and Kai glanced over at Adrian who snapped the cigarette in half.

“I don’t want you talking to your mom like that ever again.” he said, composed and calm as ever. His navy blue shirt was unbuttoned at the top and he looked exhausted, eyes droopy, but shoulders still broader than ever, arms rigid and unyielding. Surely Jongin would appreciate the brooding manliness, but Adrian just pissed Kai off with his fucking authority figure and all.

“Oh, come on!” Kai snapped. “Why are you always around here? Don’t you have some criminal on the loose to catch?”

Adrian ignored him as he greeted Kai’s mother with a short smile. “Have you talked to Jongin about the meeting, Mrs Kim?”

“I haven’t the chance.” she sighed. “I can barely catch him these days.”

Kai almost scoffed.  _Well, that’s because he’s a fucked up Alpha._

“Come on in, Adrian.”

“That’s alright, Mrs Kim. I have yet to fetch Lenz from day care. Jongin’s not home, then?”

“No.” Kai said. “He’s out with Sehun.”

Adrian’s face turned sour at once as he scowled. “Sehun? As in…”

“The one and only.” Kai shrugged.

“Who’s Sehun?” asked his mother.

“Jongin’s new boyfriend.”

And that was when Jongin's Avalanche truck pulled up on the driveway.

* * *

 

The sweet honey taste still lingered on the tip of his tongue that had brushed along Sehun’s sugary, rich warm lips, perceiving the slight tang. The scent had been overwhelming even then. It felt spectacular. A fire was ignited within him the moment their lips touched. His body wholly reacted to Sehun’s. The virgin, unembellished kiss was intrinsically the start of something new. That minute, Jongin knew that Sehun—Vampire or not—was his mate.

Jongin’s hands lightly gripped the steering wheel of his truck with a sheepish smirk playing on his much kissed lips. There was something strong, more than powerful, between him and Sehun. A natural animal magnetism that evoked every bit of Jongin’s interest and emotions. From the moment they had met, he knew that something was in store for them both. He certainly did not expect this—although he did hope—to happen.

As he pulled from the road and entered the soil-washed driveway of his house, his eyes squinted at the bright light at the veranda before noticing Adrian’s Audi SUV Q7 parked a few meters away from the house. With his jaw tightening, Jongin loosened his step on the accelerator as he edged closer to the house. He knew that his parents and Adrian had constantly been trying to get to talk to him about arranging the meeting to discuss about ‘the bloodsucker in town’, but Jongin was not sure that he would want to side with either Sehun or his pack at the meeting. One thing was certain. Most of them would be against Sehun’s stay in this town. Especially since Sehun had not gone through any of the formalities with the Werewolves before moving or after. Not to mention that he had come over to ask for justice once. He was questioning the Werewolves’ authority and Jongin as the First Alpha should have put him in his right place. But he didn’t. Instead, he had fought with his brother who was doing what an Alpha should have done when a Vampire was challenging him.

Just as he pulled over and turned the engine down, Adrian marched down the steps as Kai grinned, rather mischievously, leaning his elbows on the railings. Their mother frowned for a moment before she retreated into the house. Sucking in a deep breath, Jongin exited the truck and slammed the door behind him.

“Where were you?” asked Adrian expressionlessly, tucking his hands into the pockets of his pants.

“Downtown. Why?” He noticed Adrian’s brows furrowing and his hands reflexively turned clammy and cold. Adrian was at least few inches taller than him.

“Were you with Sehun? That Vampire kid?” his tone, however, remained subtle and calm. Jongin had no idea why he felt like he was about to be nagged by an older brother when his actual older brother was standing there, beaming and enjoying the sight.

“Yeah. Is there a problem?” Jongin growled through his clenched teeth.

“Are you friends with him now?”

Jongin let out a snicker. “And who are you to question me of that?”

Adrian pursed his lips and stared at Jongin relentlessly for a moment. And then he nodded his curtly once before he started past Jongin, towards his SUV. Their shoulders brushed lightly and Jongin clenched his eyes close.

“Adrian?” he called back, but Adrian kept walking. “Hey, I didn’t mean that.”

As soon as the SUV left the area, Jongin scrubbed his face with his bare palms and proceeded towards the house. “You handled that extraordinarily well.” Kai remarked, bounding Jongin’s comment from earlier back at him, with a scoff.

“Don’t, okay, Kai? What did you tell him?”

Kai straightened up and a corner of his mouth tugged into a smug smile. “It doesn’t matter, does it? Someone needed to tell Adrian that none of our affairs is his business. And of course, the best impact would be when it comes out of  _your_  mouth. That probably affected him the most.”

Jongin fisted his hand around Kai’s t-shirt by the chest and hauled him close. Kai’s grin only widened into a mocking one. “You stop this now before I end up hurting you real bad.”

“Aw. Did I ruffle your feathers, baby bro?” he cooed, plunging his hands into the back pockets of Jongin’s jeans, fingers digging into the flesh of his ass. Jongin’s breath froze and shoved Kai away, forcing Kai’s hands out of his jeans. “Or did Adrian have you hot under your collars?” Kai’s voice slowly toned down and so did his smirk. “If I see you hanging out with that leech again, I can assure you that I’m not gonna stand around and watch, Jongin. You’re an Alpha. Fucking act like one. We can’t be friends with bloodsuckers.”

“Watch me.”

 

* * *

 

_What am I doing...?_

Sehun fiddled with the spoon, lazily stirring the porridge which he was not planning to eat. He was aware of the table in the corner, surrounded by the Werewolf boys, including Kyungsoo and they were all giving Sehun the stink eye. He wondered what they’d do if they found out that their Alpha had kissed him.

It was nothing that had not happened between a Vampire and a Werewolf. Only that Sehun was no ordinary Vampire and Jongin was not just an ordinary Werewolf. He was not sure to what was the extent of intimacy that he was allowed to share with a Werewolf. They were both leaders. Although Sehun was more of a covert leader since Vampires had never needed leadership, Jongin was looked upon as a mentor. He was the soon-to-be figurehead that will be respected and obeyed by all. He was still a young Alpha and this scandal with a Vampire would surely drag his support down.

And that was what Sehun wanted.

Only that when they kissed—even if it were nothing but a chaste kiss—Sehun caved and trembled like a human. He felt like he was humane again. The unsteady breath that Jongin had exhaled against his lips still ghosted there like fire. He had tried to remain composed even when Jongin obviously kissed him nervously. But Sehun knew it then that he was capable of convoluted feelings. That he was capable of falling in love. His initial intention had only been to get into Jongin’s good books. The kiss was unrehearsed and unplanned. It just happened.

And now Sehun wished that it had never happened. What was he thinking? He needed to get Jongin onto his side. He did not want to be on Jongin’s side.

He brought his fingers to his lower lip and let them linger there for a moment.

“Are you brooding over something? You’re always brooding over something whenever I see you.” Jongin’s voice threw Sehun off a little and his head jolted up to see Jongin smiling down at him before he took his seat across the table. Sehun blinked rapidly, staring shamelessly at Jongin until he saw Jongin’s cheeks crimsoning. Jongin cleared his throat and glanced away.

“Sorry. You just… came out of nowhere. I didn’t… sense you coming.”

Jongin shrugged. “You must have been in deep thoughts.”

“Are we allowed to sit here together?”

Jongin’s eyes darted over to the Werewolves. “Sehun, I’m not exactly goody-goody-two-shoes, you know?” he chuckled. “I can be an ass if I wanted to. So if any of them have a problem with me sitting with you here, they can deal with me and you’ll see who’s authoritative here.”

“Would that be worth it?” he smiled, licking his lips.

“Totally.” Jongin’s face lit up again and Sehun found himself stuttering. Their shoes were brushing under the table and their eyes were locked before Sehun’s slowly lowered to stare at Jongin’s plush lips. “Sehun… about what happened on Saturday night…”

“I don’t think you’d want to talk about it here.”

But Sehun surely wanted him to talk about it here so that the Werewolves can listen.

“Yeah, you’re right.” Jongin hanged his head and scratched the back of his head. “Do you… wanna go somewhere after school?”

“Sure.” He said quickly. “But I promised to help with Chanyeol with the party decoration at 5.”

“Right… Is it okay if I help as well?”

Sehun smiled. “I’m sure Chanyeol would appreciate the help. And… why don’t you bring Kyungsoo along?”

“Kyungsoo?” he raised a brow. “I don’t think that would be a good idea. He hates Chanyeol.”

“Yeah, what’s that about?” he leaned back in his seat. All the noises in the cafeteria were cacophonous enough to deafen him. He wished he could shut all of their mouths for good.

“Childhood rivalry.” Jongin shrugged. “Where do you wanna go later? Just grab some coffee?”

Sehun laughed, but his laughter died just as Kai’s snort boomed at the table. “Do you even do coffee? I think his favourite coffee must be ‘decoffinated’.” He flumped on the seat next to Jongin and smirked at Sehun. Sehun grimaced at Kai’s black snapback that had Vampire fangs and red eyes. He rolled his eyes at Kai. “Ironic, right?” he pulled his snapback off and flipped his hair back before pulling it back on.

“What do you want, Kai?” Jongin snarled.

“Oh, come on. I just wanted to meet my baby bro’s new BFF. Oh! What has webbed feet, feathers, fangs and goes quack-quack?”

“Kai—”

“Count Duckula!”

Sehun ground his teeth. “What’s a Werewolf’s favourite bedtime story?”

Kai froze for a moment and cocked a brow. Jongin looked surprised that Sehun was shooting back. “Little Red Riding Dick?”

“The ‘Hairy’ Tails.” Sehun muttered but he felt as if Kai’s response were funnier and more offensive.

“Classic Vampires.” Kai scoffed. “Lame. What do you get when you cross a Vampire with a computer?”

“Jesus Christ.” Jongin rubbed his temples. “Can you leave?”

“Aw.” Kai kept his eyes and smirk constantly on Sehun, slumping back on the seat with his knees spread wide. Rude ass motherfucker. Sehun could not have scowled any deeper. “You get a know-it-all, that's really a pain in the neck.”

“What’s a Werewolf’s favourite food?” asked Sehun.

Kai licked his lips and bit his lower lip, staring at Sehun. “You.”

Sehun didn’t even bother to rectify him. He looked away, rather crossed and considered leaving the place.

“Dog got your tongue?”

“What do you want, Kai?” Jongin hissed at him.

“We have a presentation to do tomorrow.” Kai shrugged. “So we ought to discuss about it today. After school.”

Both Jongin and Sehun frowned. “So, now you care?” Sehun spat.

“I don’t wanna flunk my test.” Kai leaned forward over the table. He should definitely have his ears pierce and he’d pass for a street hoodlum.

“If you don’t wanna do it, then it’s fine, Sehun. We can talk to Mr Han.” said Jongin.

Keeping his glare on Kai who was still simpering, Sehun muttered, “No. It’s fine. I should get this done with anyway.”

Kai lopsided grin sent shivers down Sehun’s spine. “We’ll see about that.” He uttered under his breath before he rose to his feet and tousled Jongin’s hair. Swatting Kai’s hand off, Jongin glowered at him as Kai walked away.

“He’s up to something.” said Jongin, frowning.

“He doesn’t like me. That’s just it.”

“He doesn’t know you.”

“And you do?”

Jongin flushed pink. “I’d like to think so.” His hand crossed the table and curled around Sehun’s. That instant, Sehun felt his own blood stirring in his loins. He withdrew his hand with a heavy heart and smiled at Jongin.

“Maybe not after school. But… do you want to come over later tonight? After helping Chanyeol perhaps?”

Jongin beamed immediately and cleared his throat to hide his excitement. “Sure, sure. I might have something to do before that as well.” He shrugged.

“All right.”

 

* * *

 

Jongin peered at his watch. 4:15. He still had some time before he’d have to head back to school. All the while, his mind was thrown back at what Kai and Sehun were doing right now. Hopefully not strangling each other. “Lenz.” He called and the baby turned his head around, sucking on its bottom lip. He started to crawl to him, who was sitting on the steps of the roofed platform outside the day care. Lenz had his yellow chick toy in his hand and he crawled over to Jongin with struggle.

“Poochoo chu.” He puffed out and climbed onto Jongin’s lap before Jongin lifted him. He was too busy fiddling with his chick toy while Jongin filled his chubby cheek with raspberry kisses. “Nyu.” Lenz gasped and handed Jongin the chick.

“Chicken.” Jongin said and Lenz watched his moving mouth with earnest eagerness. “Chicken.” He said again, settling Lenz on his thighs.

“Nyi nyi.” Lenz cooed and burst into a giggle, banging the toy on Jongin’s chest.

“Is that your son?” asked a lady as she walked out of the day care with a child in her arms.

“Oh, no.” Jongin grinned. “He’s my… nephew.”

“Ah. I see. I always see him here when I pick my daughter up.”

Jongin frowned. “Yeah… His father works until late.”

“Hm.” She rubbed Lenz’s bald head which had the baby cooing again. He looked up at her and giggled before sucking his fist with bulged out eyes because she suddenly must have seemed terrifying to him. “Have a good evening.”

“You too.”

Jongin heaved a sigh as Lenz curled his tiny hand around his forefinger, still staring at huge woman. He scooted closer and pressed himself against Jongin’s chest, probably wanting to feel more protected. “You’re always the last one to be picked up, aren’t you?” he muttered to the baby, stroking his head.

“Are you gonna bring him home today, Jongin?” Krystal asked when she showed up. She volunteered to work here every now and then, but now that she was leaving for college, Jongin was going to miss seeing her play with the kids here. She was, without a doubt, a wonderful girl. Kai was a fool to let go of her. If only Jongin were straight, he was ready to snatch her away from Kai. She took her seat next to him and rested her head on his shoulder, letting out a heavy breath. “He’s always playing with himself. I’m guessing that he would be alone when he’s home, too.”

“Adrian’s a great father.” Jongin protested slightly. Lenz was starting to fall asleep against him as he patted on his back. “How are you doing?”

She lifted her head off his shoulder and sadly smiled. “Why? You think I can’t take your brother’s shit?”

“No one can take his shit after a certain degree.”

“True.” She sighed. “I’m not sure, Jongin. I just wish it was you who asked me out.”

“Me, too.” He snickered.

“I always had this crush on both of you since I was a kid, you know. As much as I liked bad boys, decent boys worked well for me. But then I realized that nothing can make you like me. But I don’t regret it. You’re a great guy. A great friend. And I’m sure as hell that you’ll be a great father.” She snorted, eyeing the baby. “Anyway, I should go back in. Are you gonna leave now?”

“Yes. I have to help with a school party.”

“All right, then. Give him to me. He’s sleeping in a very uncomfortable position.” She held her hands out and Jongin handed Lenz over to her. Jongin kept frowning, gnawing on his lower lip.

And then he called out. “Hey, Krystal.”

“Yeah?”

“Is it okay if I just hang around until Adrian picks him up?”

 

* * *

 

The library was empty when Sehun sauntered into it. He dropped his bag onto one of the chairs by the computers and wandered inside. He could sense Kai’s presence even if he could not spot him. All of his senses were suddenly heightened and Sehun’s jaw tightened. Of course. A predator—much parallel to his own kind—was looming around the place. Of course his natural instincts kicked in.

 _He’s not a hazard. He’s not a hazard._  He kept repeating it to himself when he knew that Kai was nothing but a hazard to him. As the saying went–fear activates the enemy. He peeled his jacket off and draped it over another chair before he walked into the narrow space between the bookshelves. He was goose fleshed with the hair on his nape rising.

That was when he came to an abrupt halt and spun around faster than lightning before his hand came up to clutch Kai’s neck, nails digging into the sides of the neck. Of course, Kai retaliated way faster when he yanked Sehun’s hand off his neck and his hand clawed into Sehun’s neck, slamming him against a bookshelf until a number of books tumbled off it. Groaning, Sehun felt his fangs pushing through his gums as Kai’s eyes turned golden with specks of red—like a wolf’s.

“I could rip your head off your body right this instant. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t.” he growled and Sehun’s foot came up before he stomped hard on Kai’s chest, sending him staggering back until Kai was jammed against the opposite bookshelf.

“Because you can’t.” he spat, taking a step closer to Kai. “Imagine what your brother would think if you did something like that, Kai.” His smirk definitely challenged Kai because the latter lunged forward and he grabbed Sehun by his neck again before lifting him a little off the ground. Sehun certainly did not foresee the blow that followed after when Kai slammed him on the floor. This time, Sehun almost let out a whimper when he felt his backbone crack. Without a warning, Kai plunged his fist through Sehun’s chest, through skin and ribs, breaking them.

Sehun exploded into a scream with Kai’s hand clutching his heart. “That’s not good enough of a reason for me to not to rip your heart out, eh?” Kai grunted. “What are you here for?”

Sehun’s eyes stung with tears as he squirmed in pain. He was not recovering fast enough.

“If you… want to… kill me… I suggest… you do it… now!”

Kai’s eyes remained unchallenged they stared into Sehun’s crying ones. “What a fucking bugger you are.” He moaned and pulled his hand out before getting off Sehun. Sehun laid there motionlessly, waiting for the painful stage of healing to be over with. Kai grimaced at his bloody hand and rolled his eyes. “You’re weaker than I expected.”


	3. Two

Sehun laid there immobile for a few seconds as the tendons and ligaments joined, healing painfully while Kai stood by him, watching him with a sort of mock in his smile as Sehun’s blood dropped from his fingers, smearing the covering the library’s tiles with blotches of red. One thing Vampires had which Werewolf—in their man form at least—didn’t was speed. Sehun loosened his jaw, staring at the ceiling as his fangs pierced through his gums.

Kai should have known better than to let him live.

When his ribcage had almost recovered, Sehun jolted up and within the time frame of a lightning bolt, he jammed Kai against the bookshelf and twisted one of his arms until the joint was dislocated. Kai let out a menacing growl when Sehun went for his other arm. It was Sehun’s turn to smirk. He was moving too fast for Kai to respond. And that was because this time, Sehun had the element of surprise. He held Kai’s unharmed arm twisted at the back, threatening to break it as Sehun plunged his fangs into his own wrist. “Fuck!” Kai hissed out of pain and he almost fell on his knees, but Sehun gave him a powerful jab on the small of his back which probably gave Kai a broken bone or two. Pressing his bleeding wrist to Kai’s mouth, he made him swallow at least a drop of his blood before he slammed Kai to the floor with a merciless stomp on his guts and kicked the calf of his leg until his knee was dislocated.

It was also Kai’s turn to wail in pain.

Smirking and snickering, Sehun pressed his shoe on Kai’s throat and choked him. He could feel Kai’s pulse in the neck hammering against the sole of his feet. “My blood is in your system, Kai.” Sehun snorted, pinning the boot harder onto Kai’s neck. Kai did not struggle. But his blood stained lips were trembling. His eyes were showing signs of fear. “And you know what will happen when a Werewolf tries to become a Vampire. So if I kill you now, you will die the wretched, most agonizing death, which of course, you deserve. So, I could break your neck right this instant. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t.”

“Bec… because… then…” the words came out with struggle. “You won’t… be able… to get into… my brother’s… pants… anymore.”

“Do you seriously think your brother gives a damn about you?” Sehun let out a snort. “Because, Kai, if he had, I’m sure he would not be the one having all the authorities here. Because if he loved you just as much as you actually seem to care for him, he wouldn’t be listening to a Vampire. He would be siding with his brother, no?”

Kai went completely still as he glared at Sehun. He cannot heal as fast as a Vampire, which meant Sehun had him at his magnanimity for as long as he wanted. Sehun knew that Kai was not as gullible. Maybe Jongin was not entirely gullible either. Maybe he just really saw the best in Sehun while Kai saw the worst in Sehun.  _Ahriman and Ahura Mazda…_

The only problem was—Sehun had mostly the worst in him than the best.

“You’re a rebel. I get it. The bad boy.” Sehun sighed, stomping harder on Kai’s throat, possibly breaking some soft bones. “So you are naturally under the hero, you know. The antagonist. But, Kai. Jongin doesn’t give two flying fucks about you and your rebellious attitude. In case you haven’t noticed, he has his life pretty much well set. You, however, don’t. You’re always an underdog and don’t even think that even for a second that you can outshine your brother. Because as far as I’m concerned, spending my time with him is worthwhile than wasting it on you.”

He did not want to kill Kai. Who better to bring Jongin down if not his own brother? And who better to bring Kai down if not his own brother? Sehun slowly pulled his foot back. Kai heavily resembled Jongin in both scent and looks which was bothersome.

“Oh.” Sehun retreated a step back as Kai laid there and he would not be able to move until he was somewhat healed. “And if you think I’m going to harm Jongin, think again, Kai. Because  _I’m_  not the one who wants to hurt him. And he is definitely not the one I want to hurt.”

“What is that noise—”

Sehun bit his lower lip, smiling as Kai’s eyes widened upon hearing the student’s voice. “Must be one of the students staying back for the decoration.” Sehun shrugged and turned around to face the girl when she entered the dark library. She let out a sharp gasp and covered her mouth, eyes bulged out. Sehun looked back and over his shoulder, smirking at Kai who was already trying to push himself upright in a frenzy.

“Get the fuck out of here!” he rasped at the girl, growling a little, but the girl stood there, motionlessly and paralyzed.

“Aw, Kai. She’s come to join the party.” Sehun faked a frown and before Kai could even manage to move his dislocated arm, Sehun jolted over to the girl and engulfed her in his arms, clasping a hand over her mouth before piercing his fangs right into the side of her neck.

“Stop!” Kai cried as Sehun drained the blood out of her within the matter of seconds.

“This one’s on you, Kai. Next time, think twice before provoking me.” Sehun spat, shoving the limp girl to the ground and Kai gaped at her in horror. “You might wanna get rid of the body.” Wiping the trickling drop of blood on the corner of his lips, Sehun grabbed his jacket and bag before strutting out of the library with his shirt soaked in his own blood.

 

* * *

 

He ended up not going back to school to help with the party decorations. Neither Sehun nor Kai was picking up their phones and Jongin gave up on trying to call them after the first hour.

“He’s 11 months old, Krystal. You can’t force him to play Scrabble.” Jongin whined, wrapping his arms around the chubby Lenz who had just woken up and was sitting inside Jongin’s folded legs.

“Well, I’m tired of playing with his toys.” Krystal shrugged, arranging the racks.

Jongin smirked. “Whoa, Krystal. Whose toys are you tired of playing with, huh?”

Krystal blinked and she picked up a handful of letter tiles before hurling them at Jongin. “You probably played with more toys than I did, you slut.”

Shrugging, Jongin grabbed a rack and handed it to Lenz who excitedly accepted it and began to chew on it. “He chews on everything.” Jongin muttered, brushing his lips on top of the baby’s head.

“He’s still teething.” She smiled at the baby before Lenz cooed. “I’m gonna marry him when he grows up.”

“He would be honoured, wouldn’t you, Lenz?”

Lenz looked up at Jongin and grinned as wide as he could manage. He then puckered his lips into a pout and mumbled a, “Pooh”.

“That’s a yes.”

Krystal chuckled. “You’re both really cute. Together.”

“Except that I’m not a pedo, Krystal. Unlike you, who likes to play with his toys.”

She gave the side of Jongin’s head a smack and hissed, “Your jokes aren’t funny, Jongin!”

They both froze out of the sudden when they felt Adrian’s presence before he walked into the room and straight away glared at Jongin.

“Nyooo!” Lenz gasped and struggled to get away from Jongin. He crawled over to his father before Adrian picked him up.

“Sorry I was... late.” Adrian muttered, tearing his gaze away from Jongin.

“It’s ten past eight, Adrian.” said Jongin, frowning a little. “Can’t you come fetch him a little earlier?”

“Jongin.” Krystal protested in a murmur, fisting her hand around the sleeve of Jongin’s shirt. Lenz looked overjoyed, cooing and giggling as he hugged Adrian’s neck. He always did look happy when he was in his father’s arms. For some odd reason, Jongin felt this heartburn that resembled envy. Krystal scrambled to her feet and grabbed Lenz’s bag before handing it over to Adrian. “Good night, Adrian and nighty nighty, Lenz.”

Adrian left the room without uttering a single word to Jongin.

For a minute, Jongin sat there, unsure of what he felt about being neglected like this.

“Are you guys… fighting?” asked Krystal.

Sucking in a sharp breath, Jongin shot up to his feet and grabbed his coat before hurrying out of the day care. Adrian was loading his SUV, smiling and buckling Lenz in his seat. But he straightened up and spun around to face Jongin.

“Why are you behaving like a goddamn 16-year-old?!” Jongin snapped at him. “So what? You’re gonna give me the silent treatment? You’re the one who infuriated me in the first place! For fuck’s sake, you’re a piss at everything! You’re gonna be mad at me for something so trivial?! You’re supposed to send Lenz over last night, but you didn’t. Why? Because I said that you have no right in poking your nose in my business? Well, you don’t! Why should you have a say in my life?! God! You’re acting more childish than Lenz!”

Adrian crossed his arms over his chest as Jongin panted a little, scowling into Adrian’s eyes. “Are you done?”

Jongin bit the inside of cheek to calm himself down. “Yes.” He muttered in a sigh, lowering his gaze.

He pulled the car’s door open and Jongin blinked at him. “Do you want to join us for dinner?”

 

 

 

The whole time, Jongin could barely take his eyes off Adrian and Lenz who looked like any father and son. Only that instead of a mother, Adrian was feeding the baby—struggling to feed him actually. “Don’t be such a picky eater, Lenz.” Adrian muttered against the baby’s ear and kissed his cheek as Lenz munched on the asparagus with a grimace on his face.

“Is it… difficult?” Jongin asked uneasily. He was not expecting Adrian to bring them to a restaurant. A diner would have done. But apparently, Lenz was a regular customer here and almost every waiter and waitress knew him.

“What?”

“Taking care of him.”

Lenz threw his arms up and began to sway them to the music that was playing in the restaurant, opening his mouth wide with an ‘ah’ sound when Adrian brought the forked meat to his mouth. Adrian smiled and it was probably the first time Jongin had seen him smile like that. “Would taking care of this troublemaker be difficult?” he rubbed Lenz’s cheek with his thumb and Jongin noticed the gold ring around his finger. He was still wearing his wedding band. “How’s school?”

“Huh? Oh. It’s… fine.”

Adrian took another sip of his wine. His second glass. He leaned back in his chair and heaved a sigh. His white shirt was buttoned sloppily, with the top two buttons unfastened, revealing his white gold neck chain and his eyes were bloodshot. “There was a killing today.”

“Oh.”

“In the alley, downtown. I’m pretty sure it’s one of the bloodsuckers who did it.”

Jongin’s mouth turned dry and he gulped down a mouthful of his Diet Coke. Lenz bounced in his seat and pointed at Jongin’s plate, at the untouched meat. Adrian started forward but Jongin waved him off. “I’ll feed him. You look beat.” He commented, shoving a chunk of meat into the baby’s mouth.

Adrian drained the second glass of wine before requesting for another. “You don’t think it’s your friend who did it, right?”

“My… friend?”

“Sehun.”

Jongin tried to not to scowl as he shook his head. “You shouldn’t be so paranoid about him.”

He did not reply immediately as he helped himself to the wine. And then he said, in a very low voice, “I’m not paranoid. I worry for you.”

Jongin kept mum as he focused on Lenz’s grinning face.

“Jongin… I’m sorry. It wasn’t my place to have inquired you about…” he trailed off.

“Don’t bother about it. And I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that.”

“Well, if it’ll make you talk to me more, then I have no objection in you snapping at me from time to time.” He smirked, quaffing another sip of the wine.

By the time they were done with dinner, Adrian had drained a few glasses of wine and Jongin restlessly followed him out of the restaurant. “Whoa whoa.” Jongin rasped when Adrian staggered a little after settling Lenz in his seat. He grabbed hold of Adrian’s arm to steady him. “You’re tipsy, aren’t you?”

“No.” Adrian shook his hand off, glaring at him for a second. His look spelled out ‘don’t–touch–me’. “I’m fine.”

“Forget about it.” Jongin snatched the car keys from Adrian. “I’ll drive.”

Adrian didn’t bother to protest any further as he let Jongin climb onto the driver’s seat.

When they reached Adrian’s house, Jongin stopped for a moment to gape at it. The house was huge. Lavish and posh. He was rendered goose fleshed when he thought about only the two of them living in this house alone. “Come in.” Adrian mumbled, pushing the door open with Lenz on one arm. Both Lenz and Adrian’s eyes were droopy, falling sleepy.

Jongin paused at the main hallway to gawk at the interior of the house. Most of it were antique and vintage. All of the furniture were made from wood and mahogany. Dark maroon drapes and carpets covered the windows and floor. Adrian placed Lenz on the couch and turned to Jongin. “You can leave if you want, Jongin.” He said tiredly. “I’m gonna fetch him some milk.”

“I’ll do it, Adrian.” Jongin offered. “You look fucked.” He spat and picked the sleepy baby into his arms. “Where’s his room?”

Adrian rubbed his temples, frowning at himself. “Third room to the left.” He pointed at the hallway. “Thanks.”

“And the kitchen?”

“That way.” he pointed in the opposite direction, flumping on the couch.

Jongin wasn’t a fan of diaper cleaning, but he was willing to do it for Lenz. His father looked pretty out of the mood tonight and Jongin was not sure he wanted Lenz to go to bed with a soiled diaper. Besides, he was the one who managed with Lenz whenever he stayed with him. Jongin had to thank his mother, though.

He cleaned Lenz up with wet wipes and dressed him up in the pyjamas he had found in the wardrobe in Lenz’s room. Adrian had the room pretty neat and well organized, with a bathroom and all. The white cot was what stood out the most in the room. It was filled with fluffy white blankets and pillows and an enormous number of stuffed animals. But Lenz looked too sleepy to bother with them as Jongin laid him in the cot. He then quickly hurried out of the room and crossed the living room to get to the kitchen. He found Adrian slumped back against the couch with his head hung over the top and a glass of alcohol—scotch, whiskey?—Jongin couldn’t tell. But he had his eyes closed and shirt pulled out of his pants.

Once he was done scouring the kitchen for the milk powder and had managed to make some milk as his mother had taught him, Jongin returned to Lenz and the baby perked up at once upon seeing his feeding bottle.

By the time he was done and Lenz was asleep, it was past 11 pm. Jongin exited the room and walked into the living room only to find Adrian swallowing more alcohol. “Adrian.” He pulled the glass away from him and Adrian shot up to his feet. “Are you okay? Why are you drinking like a prat?” he settled the glass on the side table.

“Thanks, Jongin. But go home, now.” He spat and shoved past Jongin, starting towards the hallway.

“Is something wrong?” he followed after Adrian.

“Do you even care?”

Jongin came to a halt and glowered at him. “What does that supposed to mean? Of course I care, Adrian.”

“Why would you care? Like you said, we’re no one to each other.”

“Well… you’re… you’re Lena’s… husband.”

Adrian turned around and God, he looked wasted. His hair was a total mess. His shirt was sagging over his broad shoulders. “And? We’re related. That’s all.”

“Yes? But shouldn’t it be enough for us to care about each other? As family?”

“We’re not family. Lena cut off her ties with every single one of you, remember?”

Jongin frowned. “What are you trying to say, Adrian? If you just want me to leave, I’ll leave. But first, if you have a problem with me, then please clarify.”

And that was when Adrian’s arm grappled Jongin’s waist, hauling him close before he was pinned to the wall of the hallway. Jongin froze, eyes wide and lips parted in stupor. “You  _are_  the fucking problem, Jongin.” Adrian breathed out right against Jongin’s lips and Jongin could taste the alcohol in Adrian’s breath. Everything stopped around them for a moment as Jongin stared into Adrian’s eyes, completely horrified. And then Adrian gripped the sides of his waist, making Jongin gasp a little as he pressed their bodies together. That second, Jongin’s entire body was on fire. He felt pumped, excited, more alive than he had ever thought possible. All the mundane worries of his life had been muted and all there was to know about was this moment. No worrying about the past, no anxiety about the future. He felt like every fibre of his being was vibrating with anticipation. Adrenaline was coursing through his veins. His hands trembled and his eyes were popped out. Adrian smashed his lips on the side of Jongin’s neck and began to fill it with sloppy, wet kisses that had Jongin almost moaning.

What the fuck were they doing?!

_It’s Adrian. Adrian!_

“Adrian, stop.” He grunted out, trying to push Adrian away, but Adrian only grabbed his hands and pinned them to the wall above Jongin’s head. His lips and tongue were all over Jongin’s jaw and cheek. All that Jongin wanted to do at that moment was arch into Adrian’s body.

_God, what is happening?_

For a very short moment, Jongin closed his eyes and felt Adrian’s kisses all over his neck. The lips were warmer than Sehun’s. Way warmer.

“Adrian!” he snapped, flashing his eyes open and shoved him back with every ounce of strength that he had before his fist struck the side of Adrian’s face. “What the  _fuck_  are you doing?!”

Adrian was stock-still as he stared at Jongin.

Jongin didn’t wait for a reply and he broke into a jog away from there. From him.

 

* * *

 

“Pure silver.” Sehun muttered to himself, flipping the page of the book that Luhan had brought him today. He was certain that silver could only hold a Werewolf back, unless if it pierced their heart or brain. “Should I silver my fangs?” he scoffed and turned another page. “Wolfsbane.” He had heard lots about Wolfsbane. Only that it was impossible to find some these days. It was almost extinct. But of course, his father would be able to get him some. He paused for a second and licked his lips before deliberately proceeding to the mating section. “When a Werewolf comes across their mate they can sense it. They feel an inexplicable urge to be near the individual. There is something compelling about the individual. They want to know everything about him or her. They want to spend time with the person. Inside, the Werewolf will feel a sense of knowing they’ve found the right person. It sounds so overly simplistic to just say that the Werewolf will just “know” when they’ve found their mate…but it’s true. One thing working in the Werewolf’s favour however is that often two mates are drawn to each other… so even a Werewolf that tends to be reclusive has a strong chance at finding their mate….it just may take a little bit longer. Often, certain types of Werewolves have their respective ways of finding their mates. Even distinct in attracting and luring their mates. The dominating tier tries to oppress his mate once he had found one. This is by either challenging his mate or proving to his mate that he is the superlative dominant and his mate is submissive. When challenged by the mate, it evokes further interest to dominate the mate. Common Lycans are on the contrary and they willingly allow themselves to be dominated by the dominant tier. They subjugate to their mates and is more considerate of their own needs. Regardless however, it does hold true that mates are often drawn to each other, and so will inevitably find each other.”

Sehun raised his brow at the page and swallowed. He recalled Jongin mentioning something about ‘knotting’. Flipping his laptop open, he browsed for the term, but before he could read anything on it, he rooted to the stop when he heard the truck pulling up in the driveway and peered through the window of his room only to find the Avalanche truck pulling to a rest. “Jongin.” He exhaled and frantically got off the bed before racing downstairs. He had completely forgotten that Jongin was coming over. Or maybe Kai had told him what had happened in the library and Jongin was here to face him. That was unlikely. Kai was not dumb enough to tell Jongin that he provoked Sehun first.

Jongin was about to ring the doorbell when Sehun ripped the door open. His smile faltered when he noticed Jongin’s red eyes and shaking hands. “Hey.” He let out with furrowing brows. “Jongin, are you… alright?”

Without a warning, Jongin lurched forward and took Sehun’s face into his hands. The moment their lips crashed, Sehun stumbled back, clinging onto Jongin’s coat. He did not protest. He could not protest. Jongin’s tongue slid past his lips as they staggered back, kissing hungrily. Jongin peeled his coat off without breaking their desperate kiss.

Sehun’s calves hit the armrest of the couch before he toppled back, pulling Jongin down with him. “Jongin.” He gasped, falling onto the couch with Jongin on top of him.

“Fuck me, Sehun.” Jongin panted into his mouth, sliding his hands under Sehun’s t-shirt. “Please.”

"N-now?"

"Now."

Sehun paused as he stared into Jongin’s bloodshot eyes. “A-are you… insane? Jongin, what happened?”

Jongin got off Sehun at once, cheeks scarlet red and flushed. “Sorry.”

* * *

 

Jongin looked suffocated and like he might throw up at any given moment now. Sehun had absolutely no idea what had happened to Jongin, but he was the one who was irked by seeing him so flustered. One moment he was ready to drop his pants for Sehun and the next, he looked guilt-stricken. He sat slouching on the couch, face buried in his palms and his breath gushing out in ragged forms. Sehun rolled his eyes a little and clasped a hand on Jongin’s shaking shoulder. He did not have the time for whatever drama Jongin had come bearing, but he hoped it would be something that might aid in his own purposes. For instance, a bloody fight with Kai?

“Are you okay?” asked Sehun, squeezing Jongin’s shoulder a little. “Jongin?”

“I’m really sorry, Sehun. I just… I don’t know what happened to me.” He muttered, raising his head with his eyes still held low. Sehun scooted closer to him and hesitated for a moment to take Jongin’s face into his hands, but when he touched Jongin’s cheek, Jongin flinched and pulled away. “Sorry. I… didn’t know where else to go.”

Sehun dropped his hand at once and frowned. “Do you… want to talk about it?”

An almost immediate shake of Jongin’s head suggested Sehun that something bad—possibly embarrassing—must have happened. “I really don’t think I want to talk about it.” He sucked in a deep breath and scrubbed his face with his palm before facing Sehun, licking his lips. “I shouldn’t have… I mean—”

“It’s okay.” Sehun faked a smile. “I… I don’t really have an objection. Except that you don’t seem like you want to do  _this_  right now. It’s as if… you’re trying to run away from something.”

Jongin swallowed as he vacantly stared at Sehun. “No. I don’t want to do this right now. Sehun, I want to get to know you for better and for worse. There’s so much I want to do with you first. Not straight away jump into this. I’m glad you… stopped.”

Sehun gnawed on his lower lip, gazing into Jongin’s eyes. There was fire in them. Only that Sehun was not sure if the fire were ignited by him. Something had happened and Jongin was doing a really bad job at hiding his emotions. “I want to do a lot of things with you, too, Jongin. Sometimes, it could start with something like this as well.” He slid his hand over Jongin’s thigh and felt Jongin wince again. Jongin looked different. Very different. There was an interplay of happiness and misery within him.

It was as if he had achieved something by losing something.

“If you don’t want to talk about it, then let’s just leave it.” Sehun said, rising to his full height. “But since you’re here, let me at least distract you.” He held his hand out and Jongin contemplated it for a second before taking it hesitantly.

Sehun pulled him over to the kitchen and Jongin whistled a short tune. “You have a pretty neat house.”

“Ordinary.” He shrugged and ushered Jongin to the kitchen counter.

“What? Are you kidding me? Your house is 10 times bigger than mine.”

“Sit.” He jerked his chin at the kitchen counter’s stool. “What do you wanna have? I can tolerate alcohol.” He smirked. “No food, sorry.”

“Beer would do.”

Sehun nodded and grabbed a couple of beer cans from the almost empty two-door fridge. “Cheers.” He clinked the edges of the beer cans.

“To sanity.” Jongin sighed before taking a sip.

“Sanity it is.” He remained silent for a stretch, leaning over the kitchen counter across Jongin.

“Sehun…”

“Yes?”

“I was running away from something.”

“I could tell. But it’s fine if you don’t wish to talk about it.”

“Thank you for understanding.” His hand crossed the counter and was draped over Sehun’s. “I’m being serious about you.”

“So am I.”

Dead serious. Literally.

“I don’t know why… I feel things when I’m with you. And I’m not saying this because I want to leave a good impression. I’m being really sincere, Sehun.”

“Then ask me straightforwardly, Jongin. Ask me out.”

Jongin was not smiling. Instead, he looked confused and indecisive. “We cannot really be… together.”

“Do you care about what your people might say?”

“I do care. But I’m… I don’t want them to be a threat to you. Have you ever heard a story where a Werewolf and a Vampire end being happy in a relationship?”

“No. But you’re not an average Werewolf and neither am I an average Vampire?”

“Oh, you don’t think you’re an average Vampire?”

Sehun dropped his gaze for a moment. “I mean… I…”

“I understand, Sehun.” he smiled. “I don’t think you’re an average Vampire either. But how do you suggest we go out?”

“Jongin, you’re worth it. And give me a chance to prove it to you that I’m worth it, too.”

Jongin rose to his feet and leaned over the counter. “I want you, Sehun.” he whispered, tipping Sehun’s chin with his fingers. “So… do you want to go out with me? Officially?”

Smiling, Sehun nodded. “Yes.”

Jongin caressed his cheek as if smoothing the skin. “You’re doing a great job at this distracting thing.”

“I’m the best in business.” He pulled back and walked around the counter to grab Jongin’s arm. “Come with me. Let me show you the rest of the house that you fancy a lot.”

 

 

 

Jongin’s smile seemed insincere. But it was clear to see that he was trying. Trying really hard to hide his emotions. “Your whole house smells like you.” He muttered as Sehun dragged him upstairs.

“Is that a compliment or—”

“I won’t insult you, Sehun.”

Smirking, Sehun glanced ahead. “I just had my books moved yesterday.”

“Moved from Miami?” Jongin snickered.

“Yeah. I’m not from Miami. Your brother must think I come from Transylvania.”

“Well.”

Sehun shot Jongin a glare, stopping before the designated home library which he had set up yesterday. “I’m not from Transylvania just because I might be related to Dracula.”

Jongin raised his palms in surrender. “Okay. My second guess was Forks.”

Sehun clenched his jaw. “I can assure you that I am no way related to Edward Cullen. Come inside.” He led him into the library and the light automatically turned bright upon their entrance. Jongin stopped for a moment to gape at the shelves of books.

“Boy. You read shitload.” He let out. For once, Sehun felt like boasting.

“Well, I’ve had about 70 years to read. This shelf is only for Aeschylus. Have you ever read The Oresteia? Oh, and this is Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s shelf. That’s Thomas Middleton. Christopher Marlowe. His Doctor Faustus is brilliant. I’ve read more times than I could count. This shelf is for Jean Racine. Eugène Ionesco.”

Jongin picked up a book and flipped through the pages with a frown etched on his face. “Oedipus Rex?”

“Sophocles.”

“I have no idea who that is.”

“The tyrant is a child of Pride Who drinks from his sickening cup Recklessness and vanity, until from his high crest headlong He plummets to the dust of hope.” Sehun muttered and fell completely silent when he noticed Jongin staring at him. “What?”

Jongin shrugged. “I’ve never heard you talk this much before.”

“Oh.”

“It’s… nice.”

Sehun bit his lip and it was his turn to rub the back of his neck. “We can just do something else. Do you want to watch anything?”

“I should… go home.” He mumbled to himself. “Can I borrow this book?”

“Yes, of course. But be careful. It’s one of the first translated editions.”

“I will… I’ll leave, then.”

“Are you sure?”

Jongin was mum for a moment before he slumped his back against the bookshelf. “I’m not sure about anything anymore, Sehun. I’m hanging out with a Vampire—whom the rest of my pack and family hates. I just… I just did something horrible… I allowed it to happen at least… And… it felt damn… good.”

Sehun kept his face straight and expression nonchalant. Jongin quickly perked up and realized that he had said too much. “You’re still taking me to the party tomorrow night, right?”

“Yes.” He answered immediately. “I am.” A smile. Finally. Before he walked past Sehun, he stopped to brush his lips on Sehun’s cheek. “See you tomorrow in History.”

Sehun shot him a faltering smile and nodded. “Just know that I’m here for you, Jongin. Whenever you need me.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

“In a great number of countries, far from the Russian frontiers and throughout the world, Communist fifth columns are established and work in complete unity and absolute obedience to the directions they receive from the Communist center. Except in the British Commonwealth and in the United States where Communism is in its infancy, the Communist parties or fifth columns constitute a growing challenge and peril to Christian civilization.”

There was no absolute word to express Sehun’s exasperation that instant as he stood at the front of the class, explaining shit about History that no one wanted to hear. To make things worse, the class was silent as a graveyard and even if every eye were on him, no one was actually listening. Even Jongin was only smiling at Sehun like a lovesick lamb. Maybe Mr Han was concentrating. But that was probably because he was annoyed by the fact that Kai was not there to present his argument.

“To the followers of Marx, capitalism was seen as being responsible for the division of society in the West into different classes. The emphasis on private ownership of businesses was seen as producing the division between the rich factory owners and the poorer working class. To do away with this inequality, communists believed that all factories, businesses and land should be taken over by the government on behalf of the people. This process of nationalisation would enable the goods generated—” he stopped himself when the classroom’s door was opened. Kai stepped in with bloodshot, sleepy eyes and dishevelled hair as if he had just gotten out of bed.

“Sorry, I’m late.” He murmured sleepily and dropped his bag on a desk before leaning his ass against the edge of the teacher’s desk, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Kai, do you realize that you have a presentation to do today? Did you even prepare anything to say?” asked Mr Han.

“Wh-what’s the topic?” he was asking Sehun without even looking at him.

“US and Soviet Union’s motives in Korea during the Cold War.” Mr Han answered instead.

“Ah. US wanted to end the expansion of Soviet sphere of communism and Soviet wanted to expand it. Is that not just it?”

Actually, that was just it. For once, Sehun was thankful for Kai’s sass.

“If you’re going to write that in your exam, I suggest you leave this class right now and find yourself a job in a fast food restaurant, Kim Kai.” Mr Han totally lost it for a second as he spat at Kai.

Kai nodded and picked up a whiteboard marker before drawing a couple of circles on the whiteboard. “Move.” He pressed a palm onto Sehun’s stomach before shoving him back. Sehun staggered a step back and clenched his fists as Kai dragged lines around the circles that were titled US and USSR. “NSC-68 stated that if US failed to counter future Soviet aggression, US allies will back off. The US perception of the Soviet role in the outbreak of the Korean War and of Soviet aims in Korea thus played an important role in escalating and shaping the Cold War. "The Chinese were prepared to drive ahead with or without the Russians. This put the Russians in a painful dilemma: even if they preferred to be cautious they would lose whatever influence they hoped to exercise over the Chinese revolution and, specifically, they would lose their dominant position in North Korea.”, as said in Marshall Shulman’s , Stalin’s Foreign Policy Reappraised, 1963, page… uh 141, if I’m not wrong. Adam Ulam, in his The Communists: The Story of Power and Lost Illusions, also located Stalin’s motivation in his strategy toward the PRC. He concluded that the attack on South Korea was certainly launched with the permission of the Soviets and “even more likely at their explicit orders,” but it was not undertaken in order to gain control over South Korea, “a negligible prize, certainly not worth the risk incurred in authorizing the operation.” Instead, Ulam thought that maybe Stalin knew that Washington would protect Taiwan if there's a war in Korea. “It is difficult to resist the conclusion that the Korean imbroglio was instigated by the Russians for the specific purpose of discouraging the Chinese Communists from breaking away from Soviet tutelage.” Those being said, did Stalin seek to gain control over the entire Korean peninsula? How much control did the Soviet Union have over North Korea?  Or did Stalin not want Korea being ruled by a single superpower? So basically, US wanted to end the expansion of Soviet sphere of communism and Soviet wanted to expand it. Is that not just it.” He shot at Mr Han.

By the time he was finished—which was within 5 minutes—the whiteboard was filled with information. He tossed the marker onto the desk and proceeded to his desk.

Sehun stood there, as still as the rest of the class before he gulped and shrugged. “What he said.” He muttered and wove his way to his own desk, completely stumped. He understood everything that Kai presented. He already knew those stuffs. He was just baffled that Kai knew all those things. It was not exactly a miracle since most of it was basic stuff, but Kai knew them?

“I see that Sehun had trained you well.” said Mr Han shakily.

“Wha—What?!” Kai hissed. Sehun did not dare turn around and meet him. “Well, yeah. He just asked me to memorize some shit.” He shrugged, lying shamelessly.

“Sehun, next time, let him do some work by himself. Don’t spoon-feed him.”

The bell rang only minutes after that, which Sehun was grateful. The last time he had to face Kai, it ended up in a blood bath. Sehun even noticed the ‘MISSING’ flyers all around the school for the girl Sehun had killed that night. His first kill in this town. And for some odd reason, Sehun was not feeling any remorse. Not yet, at least. From time to time, he needed to remind himself that he was a Vampire— that he was cruel.

When he exited the classroom, he felt Jongin’s hand on the small of his back and he turned around to face him with a genuine smile. “Hey.”

Jongin held the book out with a sheepish grin playing on his full lips. “Here.”

“Did you read it all?”

“All night long.” He whispered, stepping a little closer as Sehun retreated back until his back was pinned against the wall. “There was… a very enticing quote in it.” His brows furrowed in concentration. “Hmm… All I care about is you?”

“All my—”

“All my care is you, and all my pleasure yours.” Kai spat as he strutted past them without even sparing them a glance. Sehun blinked blankly, gaping at Kai’s back as he kept stomping away.

“How does he…”

Jongin frowned. “I have absolutely no idea.” He sighed. “What time do you want me to come pick you up tonight?”

“7 would be good.” Sehun was still blown away by how much Kai had managed to impress him today. It was as if Kai were deliberately trying to leave an impression. He shook his head a little and returned his focus back to Jongin. “Have you figured out who you’re gonna dress up as?”

“I have an idea.” He smirked, leaning closer and Sehun pressed his hands to Jongin’s chest to create some distance between them.

“Who?”

“It’s a surprise. What about you?”

“It’s a surprise.”

* * *

 

“You’re kidding me.” Luhan’s remark was followed by a roaring guffaw as he entered the room and Sehun rolled his eyes, adjusting the buttons of his black shirt before the full-length mirror. His black coat failed to compliment the black shirt perfectly and his ivory blond hair was obedient enough to be swept and gelled back neatly. “Out of all people, you chose to dress up as Draco Malfoy?”

“Is it that obvious?” he turned around and faced Luhan with a very ‘Malfoy’ smirk, fastening the buttons of his coat and stuck his hands into the pockets of his black pants.

“You’re gonna have all the girls in Jackson swooning over you tonight.” He snickered. “Oh, I’ll just stick around and clear the rooms until you’re back.”

“There would be no need for that.” Sehun clapped a hand on Luhan’s shoulder. “Go home.” He turned to the mirror again and aimlessly stared at his own reflection for a moment. He never thought that he would be dressing up for school parties again. As childish as it may seem, he planned on attending the party with full optimism. After all, everyone hooked up at parties. This might be the night to seal his relationship with Jongin—thus isolate Kai from Jongin’s life. On the other hand, fights and arguments also happened a lot in parties. If he could snatch a chance to spark a fight between the Kim brothers, that would be spectacular. Sehun would also love to see which party those little Werewolves in school would side with when came down to either Kai or Jongin. “Besides, I might come home with someone.”

“Someone?” Luhan asked, wide-eyed.

Sehun undid the collar button and flinched when he heard the truck pulling up in the driveway. “Don’t worry. That  _someone_  is not dinner.” He exited the room, muttering, “Hopefully.”

He honestly did not know why Jongin excited him in ways that he had never experienced before. Was it because he had never been in love? Was it because he had never had anyone take so much risk to be with him? Was it because he hadn’t seen anyone be so sincere about their feelings? Jongin knew that Sehun was a potential hazard—an enemy. And yet, he treated Sehun equally. He treated Sehun as if he were a human. And that was precisely why Sehun hated himself so much. Every time he thought about these admirable qualities Jongin carried, he felt like strangling himself, knowing that one day, he was going to break his heart—and possibly his soul—to an extent that it would be irreparable.

When he pushed the door open, his heart dropped to his stomach and his jaw sank to the floor. “Jongin.” He choked on the name as Jongin stood there, grinning a Cheshire beam. “What the…”

“I tried.” He shrugged. “Do I look like I’m your type now?”

Sehun was still trying to recover from the shock as he gaped at Jongin for two reasons. One – He looked so damn smart in a suit and tie. White shirt, fit black coat and pants with a matching black tie. Two – The hair. It was perfectly styled, spiked at the front, otherwise, neat. Sehun was not sure if it were his eyes or if Jongin really were glowing. He looked hot enough to even light Sehun’s cold body on fire. “What does that supposed to mean?” he tried to keep his calm but his voice cracked a little as he climbed down the steps of the veranda.

Jongin shyly smirked, clasping his hands together at the back. “The posh, ‘Bond’ look.”

Sehun rapidly blinked and gasped a little. “You’re Bond!” he rasped.

“You just noticed?”

“Jesus Christ, you think anyone would bother to think about that when looking at you in suit and tie?!”

Jongin flushed pink as he scratched the back of his head. “So, you like it? I mean…” he sank his teeth into his lower lip, glancing at Sehun from top to toe. “Obviously not as hot as you, Draco Malfoy.”

Sehun grabbed Jongin’s necktie and hauled him close until their lips smashed. It was meant to be a short kiss but as soon as Jongin’s hands lingered on his waist, Sehun caved, tilting his head to let Jongin kiss him deeper. It had been a long while since such a beautiful night had entertained Sehun. The sky was full of stars, lit by a crescent moon.

_What are you doing, Sehun? You’re not supposed to be kissing a boy like a love-struck teenager._

He pulled back from the kiss, head falling a little heavy. Jongin lazily blinked, possibly swooned as well. As they broke apart, Sehun cleared his throat and licked his lips. For a very brief moment, he noticed the frown on Jongin’s brows and he looked miles away. “Jongin?”

“Huh?” he snapped back to reality and shook his head. “We should get going.” He opened the door for Sehun before climbing into the driver’s seat.

“Are you okay? You seemed like you were thinking about something.”

“I wasn’t thinking about anyone—anything.” He quickly amended and flashed a full smile. “So… you’re ready for your first Jackson High party?”

 

 

“It’s not an official school event, so you might see plenty of bullshit tonight.” Jongin warned with a subtle smirk as he pulled up in the overcrowded parking lot. There were red cups everywhere, people everywhere, and tissues everywhere. Sehun saw people making out in every corner and he had not even got out of the truck.

“Oh my God, is that Spock from Star Trek?” Sehun breathed out, gaping at one of the school jocks making out with a girl, who presumably dressed up as Jessie, The Yodelling Cowgirl from Toy Story.

“Guess so.” Jongin laughed. “Come on. Get down.”

As they approached the school entrance, Sehun could hear the music booming through the hallways, piercing through doors, splitting his ears into halves. Sehun jumped a little when someone high-fived with Jongin as they wove their way through the hallway. He was dressed up as Jack Sparrow. God. And to come to think of it, Sehun thought  _he_  was creative. These teenagers knew what was in trend and how to snatch attention within seconds. Sehun had a hard time keeping up with Jongin in the cramped hallway. He was almost crushed by a football player—who was apparently Hulk tonight—against the lockers. And then Jongin’s hand gripped his, hauling him through the dancing crowd.

“I can’t believe you guys party this hard!” Sehun had to shout over the cacophony and heard Jongin laugh in return.

“Small town. We only get one or two parties per year!” he yelled back, yanking Sehun into the gym where the actual party was. As soon as they burst into the gym, an eruption confetti exploded right on their faces before shot glasses came out of nowhere.

“Hey, Malfoy!” one of the guys that were shoving tequila down their throats screamed, forcing the burning liquid into Sehun’s mouth. He was—by judging his hair and fake beard—Wolverine. “Now, suck your boyfriend’s cock!” he jammed Sehun forward to entertain the people that followed after him. Coughing at the stinging alcohol, Sehun spun around to look for Jongin before the latter bumped into him, giggling. The bleachers were filled with people. Tables, too. There was a stage and a band. But most of the people were on the dance floor.

“Sehun!” Chanyeol yelped out of nowhere, plunging cups filled with God knew what into Jongin and Sehun’s hands. If it weren’t for the scent and voice, Sehun would not have recognized that it was Chanyeol. “You lameass prick! You didn’t show up yesterday!”

“Sorry!” Sehun called back, taking a sip of what he understood as coconut rum and coke. He scanned Chanyeol’s outfit and the long white beard that hung half-assedly on his chin. “Are you Merlin?”

“The one and only!” he guffawed and Sehun coughed at his reek.

“You’re pissed as hell, dude.” Jongin commented, patting on Chanyeol’s shoulder.

“I know.” He grinned. “So, cheers! I’m gonna find someone to suck my beard.”

He squeezed past Sehun and Jongin, bouncing like a crazy Merlin. Purple and pink laser lights blinded Sehun for a second before he turned to face Jongin. “Hey—”

“Wait here.” Jongin blurted out and handed Sehun the empty cup before hurrying to his group of friends on the dance floor.

Heaving a sigh, Sehun retreated the punch bowl and paused for a moment, wondering if he should pretend to be having fun. Jongin obviously was having fun.

“Oh, come on. You could have done better than Malfoy. Goldilocks would have suited you better.” The kind of comment only one guy known to Sehun would make.

Sehun turned around only to be completely blown away by that piercing gaze, sexy rugged smirk, fucking hot hair. For a moment, he stood still, wondering if this were Kai. He was cladded in a light blue shirt with the top two buttons undone, exposing his bronzed and toned chest cleft, and a pair of black pants. He was holding a black coat over his shoulder. But the things that gave his identity away were the hair and the Cullen wristband. Kai’s hair was dyed into a deep reddish brown and styled, spiked and gelled—resembling Edward Cullen’s. The shirt’s sleeves were rolled to his elbows, showcasing his Cullen wristband.

Kai edged closer and leaned in to Sehun’s ear. “You’re staring.”

Clearing his throat, Sehun pulled away and scowled. “You failed. You’re not glimmering.” He turned his back to Kai and filled the spiked punch.

“Well, I wasn’t exactly going for his looks as a package, you know.” Kai said, leaning his back against the edge of the food table. “I’m glad that you stared at me enough to know who I’m dressed up as.”

Sehun gulped and kept his eyes on the cup that was already filled. “If you’re here to start shit—”

“Nah. Don’t worry. I’ll pay you back for what you did yesterday some other day.”

“Yeah. Good luck.”

Sehun turned and fixed his eyes on Jongin who was almost engulfed by the people on the dance floor. Spotting Sehun across the room, Jongin excused himself and walked over. “Come on, Sehun.” he took hold of Sehun’s hand and started to pull him forward.

“No, thanks.” Sehun yanked his hand back. Jongin already looked wasted with a couple of drinks. “You go ahead. I’ll just… I’ll just—”

“Wait here miserably until his Prince Charming comes and claims him.” Kai scoffed and Jongin’s eyes darted over to him. That instant, even Jongin seemed surprised.

“When did you dye you hair?” he asked his brother, completely awed.

“When you were fingering yourself in the bedroom.”

Jongin rolled his eyes. “Fuck yourself.”

“I told you, Jongin, that’s not possible. But fucking you is a close fill-in.”

“Jongin, just go.” Sehun insisted. “I’ll be fine.”

Jongin glared at Kai for another few seconds before heading back to the dance floor. Sehun waited a little until he saw a girl offering Jongin another cup from which Jongin drank from before he let her grind on him. Clenching his jaw, Sehun retreated to the bleachers.

This party was not going as he had planned. He was right. He hated parties. It was boring and his potential boyfriend was too busy ‘socializing’ with others. Minutes very quickly turned into an hour and Sehun finally straightened up on the bleachers as he scanned for Jongin in the crowd. At least Kai was offering to entertain him in the beginning.

“Are you looking for me?”

Sehun turned his head sharply to see Kai sitting on the row of bleachers right above him with his legs on either side of Sehun. “I didn’t… smell you.”

“Too many scents. It confuses you, right? I read about it.”

Sehun blinked. “You… read about it?”

Kai shrugged. “You should really get Jongin under control before he forgets that you even exist. Neither of us can hold our alcohol well.” He was staring at the dance floor and Sehun followed his gaze before he spotted Jongin laughing with a bunch of boys.

“I don’t really care, Edward Cullen.”

“Oh, really?”

“Really.”

“All right.” Kai grunted and got onto his feet before jumping from the second bleacher and strutted his way to the dance floor. Sehun thought about looking away but the second Kai grabbed Jongin by his waist, pulling him away from the rest of Jongin’s fucking ‘friends’, Sehun’s eyes widened, bulged out even. People seemed too drunk and busy to bother about the brothers who were basically grinding against each other and Jongin was probably completely wasted that he was even leaning against Kai’s chest with his lips parted as if to pant. Sehun rose to his feet, but he could barely take his eyes off them.

“Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!” Sehun had absolutely no idea of who started it but within seconds, everyone’s attention was on the Kim Twins. Well, these fucked teenagers sure did like some entertainment. Kai grabbed and harshly yanked Jongin’s hair, forcing his head off his shoulder. For a moment, Sehun thought that he might actually kiss Jongin, but instead, Kai whispered something into his ear, which Sehun couldn’t hear through the cacophonous cheering. Jongin then nodded miserably before he withdrew from the crowd.

“Jongin?” Sehun called as Jongin disappeared out of his sight. “Jongin?!”

“Can I have your attention, please?” the microphone squealed, deafening Sehun for a second. He turned to see Chanyeol onstage, holding the mic. “So, now. The real party starts. As stated in your invitations, we’re gonna play some games.”

Sehun frantically looked around but he could not spot Jongin.

“So please. In order for you to not to bail out from the games, we will now lock the gym. Unless you have an emergency, which is unlikely since you’re all having the party of your lives, you cannot escape without participating!” this was followed by a wave of cheer. “First off, the seniors! Please, gather to my left!”

Sehun was only vaguely aware of the fact that he was swept the corner by the rest of the seniors.

“Now, my little minions will get all the blondies stripped!” Chanyeol announced.

The blond guys were ripped off their shirts and the girls had to raise their blouses enough to expose their stomachs. Sehun almost sank his fangs into the boy who came near him to touch his shirt and then he noticed that everyone was staring at him, including Chanyeol.

“Stop wasting our time, you dick! Strip!” shouted someone Sehun didn’t even know prior to this.

Letting out exasperated breath, Sehun took his coat off and unbuttoned his shirt and let it dangle on his shoulders. “Ah.” He heard Kai’s voice somewhere near him. His eyes fell on Kai eventually and he was smirking. “ _You don’t glimmer, either_.” Kai mouthed and Sehun rolled his eyes, fighting the urge to stick his tongue out Kai.

Out of the blue, Sehun was shoved to lie recumbent on the floor and he thought about protesting at first. But then he let the thought slip. He was in a locked area with drunk Werewolves. And Jongin had abandoned him. He would not want to make a scene right now.

Chanyeol ordered something else and people were forced to kneel next to everyone that was lying down. Sehun felt like dying when Kai deliberately chose him.

Except that he can’t die.

Sehun glowered at him, but Kai smugly grinned, unbuttoning the third button of his shirt. He was already bathed in sweat with his shirt drenched wet.

“What the fuck?!” Sehun hissed when six slabs of jelly were placed on his abdomen in a straight line from his navel, up to his chest.

“They’re Vodka Jello shots.” Chanyeol clarified loud enough for everyone to hear. “Now. Your partners will need to eat them. But of course, if you don’t finish eating them all, there will be forfeit. So even if the jello breaks apart, lick and suck it up right from your partner’s stomach. I will warn you. It can be ticklish.”

Both Sehun and Kai stared at each other that instant, blinking vacantly. Well, that was something Sehun had never tried before.

* * *

 

“What is this? You can’t…” Sehun hissed under his breath, unable to move from the floor or even sit up, worried that the jello shots might topple. Kai looked baffled only for a very brief second before his smug smile returned to his lips.

“A game is a game.” Kai muttered, shrugging as he knelt up to angle himself right over Sehun. As he planted his knees on either sides of Sehun’s hips, Sehun felt the heat of his blood rushing to his cheeks. He laid there, upper body completely bared and reddening by the second with Kai’s eyes scanning through and through him. No matter where Kai’s gaze wandered, it definitely did not reach Sehun’s eyes. He stared at Sehun’s stomach for a moment and bit his lip. And that was what threw Sehun off. He should not bother. He should not give a damn that Kai was ogling his unclothed body. Kai was shit. Kai was an asshole. He did not deserve to have Sehun flushing.

But there was nothing that Sehun could do. He would not have blushed that hard if Kai had not stared at him like that. Like Sehun was some sort of prey that would satisfy his hunger tonight.

_I hate him._

Sehun looked away, gritting his teeth. But he would not deny that his hatred for Kai was somewhat subtle tonight after all the impressive stunts that Kai had pulled. He did not seem much of an asshole tonight. At least he did not abandon him even if Sehun would rather have anyone’s company than his. It also felt like Kai was aiming for this by acting all nice and partially polite today. Not to mention the excellent, first-rate explanation in class today. And he did not even bother to take any credit for it.

Sehun wondered if Jongin were all right. He left Kai with so much desolation and Sehun could not even guess what was wrong. And he was too proud to ask Kai what was wrong with Jongin.

“Okay!” Chanyeol exclaimed after rambling about the list of forfeits. “On your mark, get set.”

Sehun gulped and glanced over at Kai who finally looked into his eyes. He pressed one hand to the floor while lightly latching the other on the side of Sehun’s waist. His warm palm stung Sehun a little and he almost croaked out a moan. Which was of course a bad thing. He did not dare create a scene as he watched Kai bow slowly, licking his lips.

“And start sucking!”

It was faster than Sehun anticipated. He clenched his eyes tight for a short second when he felt Kai’s hot breath on his stomach before he sucked the jello shot with his bottom lip lightly brushing his navel. Sehun’s eyes flashed open and it was the biggest mistake of his life.

He laid there, completely frozen, eyes fixed on Kai as he took on the second jello shot. This time, it broke apart when Kai’s teeth pierced it. Sehun hissed a little when it splattered all over his mid abdomen and he almost sat up if it weren’t for Kai’s hand which pushed his shoulder to keep him down. Kai held Sehun’s gaze as his tongue darted out to lick and suck bits of the jello. He tongued Sehun’s skin, sucking a spot until it felt numb. Sinking his teeth into his lower lip to suppress a moan, Sehun felt Kai leave a wet kiss on the jello spot before he moved to the next. The thunderous cheering and clapping exhausted Sehun, but the noise was nothing compared the ragged breathing of Kai’s.

That instant, he wanted to stop this. He did not know what was on Kai’s mind, but he did not want to be manipulated like this. But instead of stopping it, he remained still, letting Kai eat the jello up to his chest before the last one broke apart. He started to sit up and then Kai gently clasped a hand around his neck, shoving him back to lie down. His hand remained curled around his neck as he sucked Sehun’s chest, eating the chest cleft rather than the jello. “Fuck.” Sehun exhaled and unconsciously pulled a knee up before his thigh was jammed between Kai’s legs, brushing against his crotch. Swallowing, he stared at Kai when he brought his head up. Their eyes locked and Kai panted a little. His warm, sweet-alcohol breath caressed Sehun’s face. His rusty red-brown hair suit him like the colour was only meant for his bronze skin.

“Oh! We have losers!” Chanyeol’s scream snapped their locked gazes and Kai quickly got off Sehun, buttoning his own shirt up. Sehun stalled a second or two before rising to his feet. “Edward Cullen and Draco Malfoy!”

“We lost?” Sehun blinked and Kai shrugged again as if he could not care less about it. Sehun looked around him and realized that everyone else had finished way before them. “Why were you so slow?”

“I wasn’t slow.” Kai spat back. “You were just slippery.”

“That doesn’t even make sense!”

“And as I said earlier, the people who lose this game will have to play the chocolate stick game. And if you lose this as well, you’ll get spanked.” said Chanyeol and a guy came forward with a chocolate covered stick. “Without snapping it, eat it up to one centimetre.”

“You’re kidding me, right?” Sehun gaped at Kai who accepted the stick and brought it to his mouth the same way he did with a cigarette. Something told Sehun that Kai was aware of this.

“Take it like a man.” Kai mumbled with the chocolate stick between his teeth and grabbed the unbuttoned plackets of Sehun’s shirt before hauling him close. Every part of Sehun’s body fell limp and his head felt extremely heavy out of the sudden as Kai buttoned Sehun’s black shirt, brushing the other end of the chocolate stick on Sehun’s lips. For an instant, Sehun thought of taking a bite of the stick. Just when Kai was done buttoning the bottom three buttons, Sehun forcefully pulled back.

“I have to leave.” He rasped and shoved past the crowd.

“Whoa whoa! You’re not allowed to leave.” said one of the two boys guarding the gym doors.

“Fucking move out of my way.” he growled with his eyes narrowing dangerously. They blinked at Sehun before stepping aside.

He broke into a sprint into the hallway and did not stop until he was out in the parking lot. He stopped to scrub his face with his palms and ran his fingers through his gelled hair. Jongin’s truck was gone.

And so was fucking Jongin. He just left.

Sehun pulled his phone out and dialled for him. The first ring became a second and then a third, but Jongin did not answer his phone. He was pretty wasted and hopefully he had not crashed somewhere.

“Goddammit.” He snarled, wanting to slam his phone on the ground. And then he caught the whiff of Jongin’s scent. His immediate reaction was to turn around with a fist, aiming to jab Jongin in the face. But his heart sank deeper when Kai caught his fist, smirking a little. Sehun withdrew his hand and turned to walk away.

“You look upset. Suits your outfit, though.” Kai caught up to his side, lighting up a cigarette.

“Leave me alone.”

“How do you plan to go home? Quite contrary to popular belief, you don’t have bat wings to fly back home.”

Sehun shot him a glare, coming to a halt. Kai dragged on his cigarette before blowing out puffs of smoke on Sehun’s face. “Why did you dress up as a Vampire today?”

“I’m allowed to dress up as I wish, Sehun. Free will. Man can do what he wills but he cannot will what he wills.”

Sehun paused for a moment and blinked at him. “Did you just—”

Kai chuckled, shaking his head. “Arthur Schopenhauer.”

“I reckon. Der Mensch kann tun was er will, er kann aber nicht wollen was er will. You keep surprising me.” He muttered and continued to walk away.

“So do you.”

Sehun kept his focus straight even if he had no idea where to go. He did not even know if he could catch a cab in this fucking town at this hour. “Did you find your brain after I almost had you gutted the other day in the library?”

“Nah. I gave in, Sehun.”

“Yeah right.”

“Oh, you don’t believe me? How about another round, then?”

“The last time we fought, you made me kill someone.”

“God. I had a hard time getting rid of that body. You’ll pay for that.” He said nonchalantly, taking one last drag on his cigarette before tossing it away. “Did you know that she had a single mother? And her mother has no one now?”

Sehun stopped on his tread and loured at Kai. “What? You’re trying to guilt-trip me? I’ve lived over 70 years, Kai. I’m past emotions like that.”

“Then you’re definitely not capable of love, are you?”

Sehun fell silent as he stared at him.

“So, why don’t you tell me what you’re doing with Jongin?” Kai crossed his arms over his chest, but his expression remained subtle.

“I’m not obligated to tell you anything. Know that first. But I will tell you this. I do like Jongin, okay? I don’t how or why, but I like him. You seriously need to get over yourself just because he surpasses you in every aspect.”

Kai let out a soft, mocking laugh. “All right.”

Sehun nodded once before he started to tread towards the exit.

“Hey, Sehun!”

“Not interested.”

“You don’t even know what I wanted to say.”

“Still not interested.”

And then came the harsh grip on his arm, forcing him to turn around. “You’re not gonna roam around the town full of Werewolves, are you?”

“Like you care?” he pulled his arm free and Kai lifted his shoulders.

“I don’t care, but I have a car and I can send you home.”

Sehun raised his brow. “You. Want to send me home?”

“Not without an ulterior motive of course.” he smirked. “But that’s for me to know and for you to worry about later.”

“No, thanks.”

“I’m sure you’d wanna know where Jongin is.”

That stopped Sehun for certain. “What do you mean?”

Kai fished the car keys out his jeans pocket and jerked his head towards his SUV.

 

* * *

 

The door swung open just when Jongin was about to pound his fist on it for the nth time. He stumbled forward with his fist jerking him forward and he fell right onto Adrian before Adrian’s strong arms snaked around his body to steady him.

“Jongin?” Adrian gasped in his sleepy, husky voice as Jongin pulled back, shoving him away.

“Don’t touch me!” he yapped, holding onto the doorframe. “You’re not allowed to touch me!”

Adrian gaped at him in shock, eyes widened and lips parted. “You’re drunk?”

“No.” Jongin waved him off, loosening the necktie.

“What do you mean no? You look guttered, Jongin.”

“No.” he whined. “You’re the one who’s rat-assed, Adrian.”

Adrian’s arm came around his waist just when he was about topple. “Jesus Christ.”

Jongin shoved him back again, whining even louder. “I said don’t touch me, you pervert!”

“Per…vert? Jongin, you’re pissed as a newt. Come inside.”

“I’m not coming anywhere. You listen to me.” He blabbered, eyes refusing to cooperate. “I came here to say… that you… you should not have… have…” he leaned his back against the doorframe and shook his head.

“Did you drive all the way here?”

“You’re married. You were married…” Jongin rambled. “You have a child… You’re crazy hot, yeah. I know that. You have an extremely sexy— Ah! Let me go!” he yelped when Adrian grabbed hold of his arm, yanking him inside before he closed the door. Jongin pushed him away and slumped back against the door. “I don’t like you! I really, really don’t like you…” he mumbled, eyes falling droopier by the second. He was aware that his legs were spreading apart as his back slid down the door, little by little. “I’ve never… even seen you that way before. And then you… you… you stink.” He sighed, sliding even lower before he dropped on the floor. “Why are you so tall?” he murmured, hanging his head. “Why did you do that?”

“Hey, Jongin. Look at me.” Adrian’s voice was nothing but an echo as Jongin slowly closed his eyes. The next thing he knew was Adrian swearing as he lifted Jongin into his arms. “Why are you such a problematic brat?” Adrian grunted and Jongin hung onto his neck, face pressed against his chest.

“I’m not your problem.” Jongin mumbled when he was laid on something really soft. It felt nice. Just as soothing as Adrian’s warmth.

“You don’t say.” Adrian pushed Jongin’s hair back and out of his forehead.

Jongin shifted on the couch, moaning a little. “I have a… boyfriend… I don’t want… you… I don’t want to… talk to you again.”

He did not hear a reply for a long moment before he heard Adrian say Kai’s name.

 

* * *

 

A reflexive whistle of awe gushed out of Kai’s mouth as he pulled up in Sehun’s driveway. He loured out the window, gawking up at the house. “I see what you’ve been doing all those years of immortality.”

Sehun unfastened his seatbelt and muttered a quick, quiet thanks before pushing the door open. He paused when Kai’s answered his phone.

“Yeah?” he noticed a familiar smirk on Kai’s lips which definitely evoked Sehun’s interest.

“Jongin’s here and he’s off his face, Kai. Where the hell are you?” Adrian. Sehun immediately recognized the voice on the other end of the line.

“He’s there? With you? I’ll come pick him up, Adrian.” he said as much before hanging up. “Well, now you know where Jongin is.” He muttered, draping a hand on the steering wheel while the other rested on the gear stick.

“With… Adrian? Why is… he with him?”

“Because I asked him to go. The funny thing is…” he shifted in his seat so that he was facing Sehun. “I asked him to go find  _him._ ”

“What?”

“I literally asked him to ‘go find him’. As I expected, he went to Adrian.”

Sehun shook his head and exited the vehicle. He had had enough to hear from Kai. Anything that Kai said was against Jongin. As he leapt up the steps, Kai caught his wrist and yanked it to turn him around. “I’ve had enough of your bull crap for one day, Kai.”

“Do you really like my brother, Sehun?” for once, Kai’s expression was serious and his tone was lightly tensed.

“What makes you doubt, huh? The fact that I’m a Vampire or the fact that you can’t have Jongin happy for once.”

“He’s my brother. If anything, I know how he thinks and what he wants. Who he wants and needs.” He spat through his clenched teeth and Sehun stiffened.

“ _Who_ he wants? How can you possibly know that?”

“We might differ in every facet. But by the end of the day, we’re brothers. We’re twins. Every part of my body says that you should be away from him.”

“You better leave before I break your face, Kai.”

“Besides, he’s not your type, is he?”

“Oh and  _you_  know what my type is?”

Kai climbed a step up and glared into Sehun’s eyes. “I’m still figuring that out.” He said at last, plunging his hands into his pants’ pockets. “I won’t warn you again, Sehun. Whatever game that you’re trying to play, know that Jongin isn’t the one who deserves to play it with you. You know how the expression goes." he grabbed hold of Sehun's shirt, fisting his hand around it and leaned in. "Pick somebody of your own size.” he snarled and shoved Sehun back before he strutted down the steps, running his fingers through his hair and got into the SUV as Sehun stood there, aimlessly at him.

It  _was_ a game. A game that Sehun thought he’d play with Jongin.

He did not foresee this new game changer. 

* * *

 

“No! Let go of me!” Jongin’s fist almost battered right into Adrian’s jaw as he hauled Jongin from the couch. He let out a loud groan, gripping and yanking Adrian’s t-shirt like a feral, wild animal by the shoulders. “I… want to… ugh…” he pounded his fist on Adrian’s chest as Adrian dragged him towards the door. It was taking Adrian all of his willpower and volition to hold himself back. He was barely in control with Jongin clinging onto him, completely wrecked and wasted. Jongin quickly went limp against him, resting his head on Adrian’s shoulder with one of his hands fisted around Adrian’s t-shirt at the abs. “I don’t… want to think… about you…anymore.”

Sucking in a shaky breath, Adrian clenched his jaw. Every part of Jongin oozed out this strong, powerfully alluring scent that had Adrian choked for minutes. “Jongin… Please.” He grunted, grappling an arm around Jongin’s waist to steady him.

Kai hurried into the hallway and wrapped his arms around Jongin before he could drag Adrian down with him. “Whoa, shit.” He hissed when Jongin fell against him.

“Kai…” Jongin mumbled and let out a whine when Kai lifted him from the ground before throwing him over his shoulder.

“Sorry for the trouble, Adrian.”

Adrian frowned at Jongin falling unconscious over Kai’s shoulder. “Is there a reason he’s drunk?”

“School party.” Kai groaned, turning around to make his way to his car. “We’re both fuckshit drunks.” He laid his brother in the backseat and Adrian heard Jongin mumble something before Kai slammed the door shut. “God.” He wiped his forehead before latching his hands on the sides of his waist, letting out an exasperated breath. “Are you okay, Adrian?”

“What was he doing here, Kai?”

“Funny, I was about to ask you the same thing, Adrian. Did something happen between you two? Cause it looks like he came running to you.”

Adrian scowled and ran a hand through his tousled hair, heaving a sigh. “You didn’t tell him, did you?”

“Tell him what? That he’s the reason you moved back here? Or that you’re—”

“Yeah.” Adrian interrupted before he could continue.

“It’s none of my business, Adrian. So long you keep your nose out of my affairs, I’ll stay out of yours.” He smirked, raising his palms in defence as he retreated to his car. “But I will tell you one thing. You’re losing the race, Adrian. Step up your game.”

“I don’t want this, Kai.” His voice barely passed for a whisper, but he kept his glare straight at Kai’s mocking gaze. “He’s in love with someone else, isn’t he?” his eyes were on the car’s window now, frowning with morose and rejection.

“Don’t worry, Adrian. As much as I hate you, I can tell you that you’re good for Jongin. And about that  _someone else,_ I’m getting rid of him. And no, I definitely don’t think he’s in love with him. You of all people would know what sort of love that is, Adrian.”

Adrian shook his head and faltered a step back. “Make sure he gets well. Call me tomorrow if he…” he stopped himself when he noticed Kai’s lips quirking into a smug smile. “Go home. You didn’t drink, did you?”

“Do you want me to blow?” he scoffed, climbing into the car and Adrian started back into the house. He closed the door and leaned back against for a moment, tilting his head to rest on it and clenched his eyes, inhaling sharply. He balled his hand into a fist and swiped his thumb along the cold wedding ring.

Pulling away from the door, he turned the lights off before plodding over to the baby’s room. He stopped at the door and smiled to himself, watching Lenz sleep soundly in his cot with his foot vibrating a little.

Sometimes, you can’t ask for whom you want to fall in love with.

He lifted his son from the cot and pressed him against his shoulder, carrying him to his bedroom. As he laid down on the bed, he laid Lenz on his chest and patted slowly on his back when the baby began to stir. “We never should have come back.” he muttered under his breath, brushing his lips on Lenz’s head. “I have you. That’s more happiness than what I could ask for.” Adrian felt his chest tighten as he felt his baby’s heart beat against his own. “We should leave, Lenz.”

 

* * *

* * *

 

“Jesus Christ.” Kai made a guttural sound in the back of his throat out of frustration as he dropped Jongin to lie on his bed. “You swine.” He spat quietly, ripping Jongin’s clothes off with Jongin twitching and rustling all over the mattress, trying to lamely swat Kai’s hands off his body.

“Fuck you… Kai…” he moaned out in a breath when Kai ripped his belt off the belt loops. “Ahh…” this moan, however, was very distinct to the ones before when Kai started to undo the button and fly of his pants. He gasped, gripping Kai’s hand out of the blue and palmed it over his crotch. Kai rolled his eyes and gave Jongin’s crotch a squeeze, grasping between his legs until Jongin squirmed aimlessly.

“I bet you’d want Adrian to do that.” Kai snorted, yanking Jongin’s pants off.

“Uhh…” he mewled, eyebrows furrowed and hand clenching his own hair. Leaving the boxers on, Kai grabbed the comforter and ferociously hurled it over Jongin’s body before flumping down to sit on the chair by Jongin’s desk.

“I’m gonna fucking hurt you in the face if you make another noise, you girly git.” Kai hissed, slumping back against the chair and sprawled his legs apart, finally taking a breather. He watched Jongin stir in his bed for a moment before his brother went completely still and began to softly snore. After catching his breath, Kai pushed his hair out of his eyes and wiped his jaw. His eyes landed on the mirror before him and he unconsciously smiled, noticing his hair. He liked the hair colour. Well, he liked it because Sehun acknowledged it and was annoyed by it. He might keep it that way for a little longer.

Nothing changed. He still despised Sehun to the core of his heart. Only that after their encounter in the library, Kai saw him more as a worthy opponent than just a lame Vampire. He did get his ass kicked that day. Only because he was not expecting that from Sehun. Definitely not from an ‘all squeaky clean’ leech. But that day, something was sparked within him. A rage. A fire. An urge to dominate his opponent. To subjugate him. In simpler words, to tame Sehun.

There was something that Sehun was planning to achieve. Kai had no doubt on that. But if he actually were nothing but a bored bloodsucker looking for a hobby—a.k.a. Jongin—then Kai had found himself a hobby as well. Even if Sehun weren’t exactly playing a game, Kai planned to be the game changer in his life. Sehun said that he cannot outshine Jongin. Kai was no fool to be manipulated by him. If Sehun thought that Kai and Jongin cannot chip in each other’s reliance, then that was what Kai needed to do precisely—to stick by his brother at all costs. But he figured that he’d mislead Sehun a little. Play with him until he believed that he had gotten what he wanted. Right now, Sehun wanted Kai to hate Jongin. Not that he was already enthusiastic or dotty about his dim-witted brother or anything, but he needed to show it to Sehun that he was trying to  _outshine_  Jongin.

But above all. His first priority was to keep the First Alpha—the head and peace keeper of all Werewolves—from the clutches of Sehun. Even if that needed him to divert the attention to himself.

Jongin maffled in his sleep, tugging at the comforter. Kai rose to his feet and kicked the bed’s leg. “Shut up and sleep, Jongin.”

 

* * *

 

“Yes.” Sehun muttered over the phone, mentally picturing Luhan nodding his head on the end of the line. “I’ll meet them after school. Will they all be there?” he tried to keep his voice as low as he could even if all the stalls in the boys’ toilet were vacant.

“Most of them will, Sehun. We’re not allowed to gather like this without permission.” said Luhan and Sehun could almost see his frown.

“I’ll get the permission.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Just make sure they’re there. I need to talk to them. All of them.”

“All right, Sehun.”

He ended the call and blankly stared at the phone’s screen. It was time he made the next move. There was a threat now. It was not like he did not have a threat before, but now, there was a bigger threat. To secure his safety, he needed support.

The sudden scent that stung his nose paralyzed him for a second.

Kai.

Sehun spun on his heel to meet Kai’s face but instead, before he could even realize it, he was pushed against the closed door of a stall with a hand fisted around his shirt by the chest and his lips were crushed under another set of lips. It took Sehun a moment to realize that it was Jongin who was kissing him, hard and… agitated. Sehun could feel that Jongin was upset as he pressed his lips harder upon Sehun’s.

“I’m so sorry.” Jongin gasped, breaking the kiss and he released Sehun’s shirt. His eyes were full of disappointment and regret. “I was so fucking pissed last night. I don’t even remember anything that happened, Sehun.”

Sehun wanted to hit Jongin. He wanted punch him in the face. Instead, he sighed and gently pushed Jongin back. “It’s okay. I was fine. I’m not some helpless boy, Jongin.” He brushed past him.

“Sehun.” Jongin grabbed hold of his wrist. “I’m really sorry, Sehun.”

“I said it’s okay, Jongin.”

Right. He needed permission.

Gritting his teeth, Sehun turned and pecked Jongin on the lips sourly before smiling. “Jongin… Why don’t we meet up later?”

“Really?” Jongin’s eyes widened. “Sehun, you’re not mad at me at all?”

“No.” he lied. “So… do you wanna go out with me or not?”

“I’d love to.” He blurted out. “I… want to make it up to you.”

“All right. Then make it up to me tonight.” He smirked and saw Jongin flushing. Not in the blushing sort of way, but in the embarrassed, what-the-fuck way. Which was really unlike him. “But before that, I would like to meet up with the Vampires in the town.”

Jongin blinked before raising his brow. “What?”

Sehun pressed his palms onto Jongin’s chest. “You’re okay with that, right?”

Jongin bit his lip, contemplating it for a moment. “Just a meetup?”

“Just a meetup.”

“You didn’t tell me about this.”

“I just wanna meet them, Jongin. No big deal.”

Letting out a heavy breath, Jongin nodded. “Okay.”

“Okay.” Sehun pulled away and smiled insincerely. The school bell rang, startling both of them a little. “We should get into class.”

Just when he turned around, Jongin yanked his arm and pulled him into an embrace. “I really am sorry, Sehun.” he murmured, hugging Sehun’s shoulders. “I… I feel like a complete asshole.”

Sehun let out a sigh and wrapped his arms around Jongin’s waist. “You just left.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

He didn’t just leave. He went to Adrian. But Sehun did not bring it up. “Next time, I’m gonna chaperone your ass during the party.” Sehun mumbled, drawing back and saw Jongin smile.

“You have my permission to do just that.”

Jongin exited the toilet first and just when the Sehun was about to step out, a jeaned leg popped out of nowhere, blocking his path through the entrance. Sehun looked up at Kai and squinted at his ruddy pink hair. “Kai.” Jongin snapped at his smirking brother.

“It will only take a moment, baby bro. Hop along. I just need to talk to him for a minute.” Kai eyed Sehun and his gaze itself was blackmailing Sehun. “I’m sure Jongin doesn’t need to hear what I wanna say.” Grinding his teeth, Sehun nodded at Jongin.

“I’ll be fine.” He assured Jongin but Jongin seemed unconvinced as he stared at them in bafflement. “Go. I’ll come.”

When Jongin hesitantly left the place, Kai turned to Sehun and shoved him by the chest until Sehun staggered back into the toilet before Kai banged the door shut and locked it behind him. “Have you chosen to completely ignore my warning?” he stepped forward for every step that Sehun retreated.

“And if that happens to be the case?” Sehun challenged him. He was forced to a stop when his back was pressed against a wall and Kai raised a hand before pinning to the wall next to Sehun’s head. Sehun glanced over at Kai’s tattoos before fixing his eyes on Kai’s. His breath grazed Sehun’s face as his heat radiated all over Sehun’s body, suffocating him a little.

Kai pressed a palm onto Sehun’s chest and Sehun’s eyes bulged out in shock. “Do you remember the last time I had your heart in my hand?” he growled as the pressure of his palm rose, fingers digging into the chest.

Sehun gulped. Not because he was afraid, but because of how close Kai was. 

* * *

 

His hands came up to Kai’s chest before he gave him a fierce shove, forcing him to withdraw. It didn’t take Sehun too long to realize that he was flustered because of Kai’s scent. Although Kai and Jongin shared an almost indistinguishable scent, all this while Kai’s scent had somewhat been strong, if not appalling. Maybe it was just a matter of Sehun’s impression of him, but it had always been lamentable. But now, it seemed like Kai really reeked of dominance, still, however also as subtle as Jongin’s. It was verging on attracting on an animalistic sphere. It had Sehun’s mind and body boggled for a minute. Kai froze as well as he stared at Sehun staring at him, gaping even. There was something different about Kai. Very different. Not just the scent—although, Sehun would like some enlightenment on how he smelled lightly different now—but something about him was bordering on some sort of metamorphosis.

“What are you looking at?” Kai asked, scowling, in an annoyed tone.

Sehun blinked rapidly before shifting his gaze. “If you’re done wasting my time, can I leave now?”

The scowl was replaced by a smirk as Kai edged closer again. “So, you finally come to terms that you need to ask for my permission to do things, huh?”

If Sehun did not know any better, he’d say that Kai was looking for control. He was not the Alpha, but Sehun knew that Kai wanted to command, dominate and preside over everyone. And now, the only person he seemed to be interested in taking control of was Sehun. Huh. Kai was not the only one who could see right through people. A worthy opponent, indeed.

“I wasn’t asking for your permission. Besides, you don’t own me.” Sehun spat, starting for the door.

“Not yet.” He heard Kai mutter under his breath as he exited the toilet. Whatever that meant, Sehun didn’t bother to give it much thoughts since it will only hurt his brain. It always did whenever he thought about Kai. Such a problem Kai was for him. If Kai were out of the way, he could have gotten rid of Jongin easily. Handling two Werewolves—especially when one of them hated Sehun to the core of his heart—at the same time was difficult, even for the Prince of Vampires. Not to mention the fact that if Jongin were stripped from the title, Kai would immediately ascend to the throne. He was a substitute player at the ready. Sehun needed to make his moves very carefully.

 

 

 

 

“No.” Jongin laughed sotto voce, enlarging the image on his phone. “That’s my aunt. Does she seriously look like my grandma? I mean she’s not much older than my mom.” He whispered.

Sehun smiled at him. God. Why was he such a sucker for Jongin? He should be mad at him. Not just pretending to not to be mad. He really was not mad at him anymore. He literally couldn’t be. There was just something about Jongin that forced every good notes out of Sehun. The principal kept blabbering on and on about school’s safety at the assembly in the gym after the whole girl-gone-missing matter. The girl that Sehun had ruthlessly murdered. He could not bother much about it, but he wondered what Jongin would think of him if he knew. All this while, Jongin pegged Sehun for someone benevolent. A benevolent Vampire. His feelings were pure. His intentions were genuine. Sehun’s weren’t. No one could blame Jongin. Jongin was the type to see the best in people, which made him a weak leader. The only reason Sehun could think of why the Werewolves chose Jongin as their Alpha was because Jongin was lenient. Kai, on the other hand, wasn’t. If they had Kai for their leader, they would be oppressed and Kai would probably make sure that no one ousted him. He’d be a powerful leader. But not a nice one obviously.

Would Jongin even want to be with someone like Sehun? Did he deserve that? Sehun frowned for a very short second as he watched Jongin giggle at his phone before he looked up at Sehun and nodded his head, gesturing a ‘what’.

Sehun shook his head and grinned again. They sat in the corner at the top row of bleachers to stay away from the rest of the school and the whole time, Jongin kept his hand fumbling over Sehun’s. “I’ve never noticed how people aged, you know.” Sehun whispered back. Their shoulders were pressed together and Jongin knee was brushing against his own.

“Of course.” Jongin suppressed a laugh and Sehun nudged his elbow on his arm. “That’s Kai.” He showed Sehun his phone’s screen and Sehun squinted at the picture of an old photograph of a naked baby in the bath, laughing with its toothless mouth wide open. Sehun raised a brow and reflexively looked over at the bleacher below him and spotted Kai on the farthest end staring at him. His guts told him to avert his eyes at once, but it was too late when they had made the eye contact. Kai was glaring at him, slumped back with his arm around Kyungsoo’s shoulder, legs crossed very boyishly, and his red-brown-pink hair sticking out everywhere. His scowl deepened for a very short second before he turned his gaze to the principle at the podium. Sehun swallowed and diverted his attention back to Jongin, smiling falteringly. “What is it?”

“I cannot believe Kai was a baby.” Sehun sighed and Jongin silently chuckled.

“Everyone must have been?”

“I couldn’t think of him as something that was so innocent.”

“Looks can be deceiving. Sometimes, people aren’t really what you expect them to be.” Jongin’s expression changed at this as he dropped his gaze. “Sometimes, you wanna do the right thing but end up doing the wrong thing anyway.” He breathed and Sehun frowned. He wasn’t sure if Jongin were talking about him or himself. But definitely not about Kai.

Sehun curled his hand around Jongin’s and hauled him to stand. “Come on.”

“Where?”

He dragged Jongin out the exit that was right next to them and when they were outside, Sehun gently pushed him up a wall next to the notice board and pressed their lips together. Jongin cupped his face on both sides, tilting his own head a little to fit their lips perfectly as Sehun kissed his bottom lip, arms snaking around Jongin’s lithe waist. They made out until the bell rang, admitting them the end of school and Sehun pulled back with a thin line of saliva connecting their lips. Jongin looked flushed and flustered as he lowered his eyes before Sehun could meet them. “Jongin?”

“Hm?”

“What is it?”

Shaking his head, Jongin managed a short smile. “You do like me, right?”

Sehun gulped the lump that started to rise in his throat. “Yes, Jongin.”

Maybe Jongin could not see any bad in Sehun because Sehun sincerely wanted to show Jongin the best side of him. Perhaps, their feelings were authentic.

Jongin nodded while Sehun drew back when the students began to rush out of the gym. “You have to go now, right?”

“Yeah.” Sehun leaned in for one last peck on Jongin’s cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“All right.”

Sehun started to walk away, biting his lip. He could feel Jongin’s eyes on his back and when he looked back at him, Jongin pursed his lips, smiling. Something was definitely off with Jongin, too. The Kim brothers were surely not themselves since the party. Jongin still looked smitten as ever, but there was something odd as well. Sehun wondered if it had anything to do with Adrian since Jongin happened to be there during the party.

When he got into his car, Sehun adjusted the rear view mirror, running his hand through his hair before the car’s door was opened and Kai slid in, grinning a Cheshire smile. “Heyo.”

“What the fuck are you doing?” Sehun gaped at him, blinking blankly as Kai fastened the seatbelt.

“Heard you’re going to a harmless leech gathering. I can’t be much of a trouble if I attended your harmless meeting, right?”

“Jongin told you?”

“No. I’ve eavesdropped your conversation in the morning.” He admitted shamelessly.

“Get down.”

Kai leaned in so close to Sehun’s face out of the sudden that the tip of their noses almost brushed. “Make me.” He exhaled and his warm breath stung Sehun’s lips for a moment before Kai pulled away.

“Why are you such an asshole?”

“Why are you such a drama queen?”

“Don’t you have something better to do?!”

“Don’t you have something better to suck on?”

“Why are you behaving like a 10-year-old?!”

“Oh, do I seem too young for you, 70-year-old grandpa?”

Sehun blinked.  _For_  you? Or did he say  _to_ you?

“What makes you think I’ll bring you along?” Sehun hissed.

“If it’s just an innocuous gathering, then I shouldn’t be a problem, no?”

Sehun started the engine, gritting his teeth. He should have gotten rid of Kai that day in the library itself. No. He needed Kai to be the downfall of Jongin and Jongin to be Kai’s. The perfect discord to drive the Werewolves out of this town. “Sure. If you’re too fond of being in a place full of Vampires.” He shrugged, but his throat was tight. Kai was ruining his plans time and again.

“I seriously love it when you think that you’re the leading protagonist of this story.” Kai snickered, smirking.

“What?” Sehun asked, pulling the car out of the parking lot.

Kai was silent for a second before he said, “Maybe it’s not your story that’s being told, Sehun.”

Sehun froze for a second, stepping on the brake harder than needed at the junction out of the school grounds. His mother was the only one who had told him that in his entire life prior to this. Sometimes, it was not your story that was being narrated. Maybe you were a side character in someone else’s story. “What do you mean?”

Kai shrugged and kept his eyes at the window as Sehun steered the car onto the road. “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” He murmured and Sehun stiffened.

“Maya Angelou.”

“I Know Why the Caged Bird Sing.”

“Do you read a lot? Because that has to be the greatest plot twist ever.”

“I don’t think I need to share anything with you.”

“Fine. I forgot that you’re a prick.”

“How can you forget that when I’m one of your own kind? When you’re the Prince?” Sehun glanced over at him sharper than he should have with his guts twisting into knots. “Of pricks.”

Sehun could have sighed. It was unforeseen. He certainly was not expecting to be driving the car with Kai by his side today. He didn’t even think that Kai would be jamming his plans away. He needed to do something. He cannot disappoint the Vampires. They’d take him for a joke if he showed up with a Werewolf and they’d probably hate him forever if he did not show up at all.

“Were you born or made?” Kai asked.

“What?!”

“I’m always so confused. Is there an age when you’re allowed to become a Vampire?”

“Why are you even asking me that?” he scowled, keeping his eyes on the road.

“Because you’re the only leech that I talk to?”

“I don’t think I need to share anything with you.”

Kai chortled. “Touché.”

Sehun refused to look at him but he was aware of Kai staring at him the whole time.

“Do you have like a vegetarian blood?”

“Shut up, Kai.”

 

* * *

 

He did not know what he felt anymore. It was all a muddle of overcomplicated emotions and feelings every time he thought about it. But then again, there was nothing that Jongin could do to not to think about it. He could not understand why it was killing him. Slowly and painfully. He liked Sehun. A little too much. Even if it were wrong, even if it were against nature, he was determined to take every risk because even from the first moment he had met Sehun, he knew that he wanted Sehun in his life. None of them asked to be a Werewolf or a Vampire. Despite their lifestyle, they were still capable of love.

Jongin laid splayed on his bed with his face buried into the pillow as he sulked sorrowfully. He wanted to break some things in the room out of frustration. But he knew that it would be futile. If it were Kai, he’d break them first before he would rethink about his decision. Jongin was nothing like Kai even if they were twins. Some supernatural brothers they were. Jongin needed to reflect on a certain decision more than a thirty times to actually decide that it was the best decision. He was careful about everything. Except Sehun. He wanted to be reckless about Sehun. He wanted to fall in love recklessly.

But the only thing in his life that had felt so reckless was when he almost gave in to Adrian with his body burning against Adrian’s.

“Nggrgh!” he groaned into the pillow, covering his head with his arms.

He perked up when he heard the tyres driving over the damp soil on the driveway and scrambled off his bed before running over to the window. The moment when his eyes fell on Adrian’s black BMW X6 SUV, his heart skipped a beat and an automatic, idiotic grin stretched his lips before it quickly faltered when he realized that he was grinning. He watched Adrian exit the car with Lenz on one arm and the baby’s bag in the other. Lenz was sucking on his yellow ducky pacifier, playing with his father’s neck chain. Jongin could not help but smile at Lenz, though. He had no idea how or why he had become so fond of the child, but that was the reality. Jongin would do anything for Lenz.

He turned on his heel and broke into a sprint before his ankle crashed the bed’s leg, sending him stumbling forward. Jongin hissed at it before hurrying downstairs, limping a little and when he reached the bottom of the stairs, he came to an abrupt halt, panting a little as Adrian’s eyes darted over to him. He quickly returned his attention back to Jongin’s mother who was tearing his son away from his arms. “Has something happened, Adrian?” she asked him.

“A couple of campers have gone missing and we’ve found some lead in the forest near the mountains.” Adrian said, still avoiding Jongin’s stare. “I’ll try to get back by tomorrow. Sorry if it’s a bother.”

“Not at all.” Jongin’s mom assured him, smiling at Lenz who had already noticed Jongin’s presence and was smiling at him through his ducky pacifier. “We’ll take care of him.”

“Thank you.” Adrian grabbed Lenz’s head and pecked on his temple before turning around. For some odd reason, Jongin felt this disappointment inside him.

Adrian was not being fair. He was running away. He should man up and explain why he had done that the other night. Jongin deserved at least that.

“Adrian, hold on.” called Jongin’s mother. “If you’re going to the mountains, bring Jongin along with you.”

Adrian stood stock-still for a minute, blinking at her. “What? Why?” his looked over at Jongin for a very short second.  _Loser. You looked at me._ Jongin hid a smirk. “I’ll be working.”

“But you’re going alone, aren’t you? You said that you’re going hunting.”

“Yes. But technically speaking, I’m doing for work even if I don’t have the permission because I think it might be the Vampires’ doing.”

“Precisely. Adrian.” She lowered her voice as if Jongin could not hear her. “You’re trained to be an Alpha. He isn’t. Teach him some of the things that you know, please. Do me this favour, please?”

Adrian bit his lip, stroking his gelled hair with his fingers. Jongin definitely  _did not_  notice how his biceps flexed… “I’m not sure, Mrs Kim.”

“All right.” She sighed disappointedly. “I just didn’t want him to be… you know.”

Frowning, Adrian finally glanced over at Jongin and fixed his gaze on him. “Do you… want to come along?”

Jongin’s lips parted, but he was tongue-tied. He ended up nodding his head in agreement and Adrian frowned further.

 

* * *

 

“How long do you plan to stall?” Kai asked when he climbed down the car to join Sehun’s side.

Sehun ignored him, fiddling with his phone after texting Luhan that the meeting needed to be called off. He had his back leaned against the car that was parked on the side of the abandoned road, bordered by dense trees. Kai let out an exasperated breath, grabbing Sehun’s shirt by the side of his waist and hauled it until Sehun faced him. Louring, Sehun swatted his hand off his waist and took a step back.

“I didn’t ask you to tag along like a fucking extra baggage.”

“Ah. So you cancelled the Meeting of the Living Deads?”

That ticked Sehun off. Yeah, he had died. But he was not dead. “Can you stop? I didn’t ask for any of this, okay?”

“Oh. Did I ruffle your feathers? You might have not asked for it, but you sure are enjoying it.”

Sehun pocketed his phone and faced Kai properly with his body trembling a little and hands balled into fists. “What do you take me for?” he asked silently.

“A bloodsucking, manipulative jackass?”

Sehun went berserk that instant when his fist slammed the side of Kai’s face. Kai staggered to the side and held onto the car to steady himself. “Do you know why Jongin can’t think like you? Do you know why he doesn’t think that I’m manipulating him? Because I really do love him!”

Kai laughed, but there was no humour in it, as he rubbed his jaw, straightening back up and advanced closer. “I’ll believe that you leeches are capable of such a thing when you swallow your father of all Vampires’ balls. Of course, you might do that since you bloodfucks don’t really live by principles. Tell me, Sehun. Did your mother sell you to a bloodsucker or did she fuck one to beget you?”

Sehun hurled his fist forward again, completely losing his temper. But this time, Kai caught the fist and plunged his own fist into Sehun’s face. Stumbling back, Sehun winced at the cracked jaw before lunging forward again. He caught Kai’s arm that aimed for his neck and kneed Kai’s in the guts before planting a number of punches into Kai’s ribs until he heard one of them break. That was when Kai snapped, eyes turning golden as he growled and grabbed Sehun’s neck before hurling Sehun back until he was smashed against the car, cracking the backseat’s window and denting the door. Sehun groaned at the pain as he dropped to his fours onto the road. But he quickly jolted back up and shot forward with his fangs pushing through his gums.

Kai’s hand fisted Sehun’s shirt and turned him around before pressing Sehun’s back against his chest and before Sehun could retaliate, Kai’s teeth sunk onto the side of his neck with his hand gripping and pulling at Sehun’s hair. He gasped, feeling the stinging Werewolf venom surging through his veins before Kai shoved him away, mouth dripping with Sehun’s blood.

For a moment, Sehun stood there, unable to believe what had just happened. He laid a palm over the bite and gaped at Kai. “Yeah. You might be strong, Sehun.” he panted. “But a Werewolf’s bite is still lethal to a Vampire.” Kai was part Werewolf now. He was snarling, growling with his eyes as yellow as the sun.

Sehun had his perks as the heir of the Count. He could heal from Werewolf venom, although it would take a long time and he’d still have to go through all of the painful process, minus the death part.

“You can either beg for my blood to heal you or you could tell Jongin about it. Then we’d have to tell him the whole story, won’t we?”

Sehun also knew that only a Werewolf’s blood can heal a Werewolf’s bite. But he did not need one. However, if he healed without a Werewolf’s blood, it would become palpable that he was no ordinary Vampire. He relaxed a little even if the bite were already stinging.

“I had a family once, too.” He said calmly. “A mother and a sister. I don’t even remember my sister’s face anymore. I was forced to kill someone to live when I was 18. My own mother. You think I wanted that? Do you seriously think that I could have controlled my blood thirst? You have it easy, Kai. You never had to beg for food. You never had to let assholes touch you everywhere so that you can bring your mother and 5 years old sister dinner. You never had to get kicked in the stomach by your father when you were a child because you didn’t bring home money from begging in the streets. And you definitely never experienced the moment when you’re liberated from a fucked up life. So yes, I am dead. But I didn’t exactly live my life when I was alive, anyway. I was saved just when I was about to die. The irony is to die for, isn’t it? I’m sorry if I seem too inhumane for you because I’m done being human. I am who I am. I’m sure you want people to accept you for who you are.” He spat as much before shoving past Kai until their shoulders bumped together.

He paused on his pace to look over at Kai and he was quite taken aback to see Kai frowning with his head hung a little. God. Sehun hissed a little when his neck went numb. He fished his phone out and dialled for Luhan as he ripped the car’s door open.

 

* * *

 

Kai burst into the house in a frantic frenzy and raced to the living room where he found his mother with Lenz. “Kai? What happened?!” she yelped, jolting to her feet and the baby just broke into a cry upon seeing Kai’s jaw covered in blood.

“It’s not my blood.” He blurted out in a hurry and dashed to the stairs before leaping up them. “Jongin!” he gasped, gushing into Jongin’s room. It was empty.

“Kai, what happened?!” his mother squawked, running after him.

“Where the hell is Jongin?!”

“He’s not here.”

“Fuck.” He hissed under his breath, hoping that Jongin was on his way to see Sehun or something. He pulled his phone out and his thumb fumbled as he scrolled for Jongin’s number. He was too egoistic to offer Sehun his blood. The least he could do was ask Jongin to do the right thing after he had fucked up big time. His heart was hammering against his chest when the call was unreachable. “Fuck!” he redialled.

“Kai, he’s at the mountains.” His mother said, clinging onto his arm.

“What?”

* * *

 

“What are you doing?” Adrian sighed with a dash of disappointment verging on annoyance when Jongin came to a pause to lean against a tree and rest his spine after almost three straight hours of trekking.

“I’m tired. Can’t we take a break?” he asked breathlessly as he gulped in gasps of air. He was not exactly exhausted, but this seemed like the easiest way to prove it to Adrian that they had been wasting so much time in this mountain, looking for absolutely nothing. There was not a single Vampire scent that Jongin could catch. It was not a Vampire that got to the campers. But Adrian seemed assured. Or Adrian was just another stereotypical Werewolf who took all Vampires for enemies.

Heaving in a deep breath, Adrian proceeded to the tree opposite Jongin and flumped on its roots with his knees pulled up. He had not said a single word to Jongin ever since they stepped into the forest and Jongin could not bring himself to start a conversation either. Not to mention how obviously Adrian was avoiding Jongin’s gaze at all costs. It was truly annoying and vexatious. Jongin could not read him. He could not guess what was running in Adrian’s head since Adrian always wore the same, nonchalant expression. The only reason Jongin had come along was to milk some explanation for the other night out of him, but at this rate, he doubted that Adrian would bother to enlighten him on anything. Well, that was not entirely the reason he had joined Adrian on his useless trekking. Jongin finally felt like he was not suffocating with Adrian around. It was a very weird feeling that even he had yet to understand.

Adrian looked up at him before quickly averting his gaze and Jongin bit his lip, turning his own attention to the dark dusking sky that roofed him. “We’re not gonna find anything here.” Jongin said, without looking at Adrian.

“What makes you say that?”

Jongin dropped his head and fixed his eyes on Adrian. “We’ve been here for hours. I don’t think I sense any presence of vampirism.” He scoffed, but apparently, Adrian did not find it funny as he kept his face straight.

He let out a loud breath, rising to his feet. “How do you think we could sense ‘any presence of vampirism’?”

“Scent?”

“Do you know that Wolfsbane can block our senses? Including smell?”

Jongin blinked. “What?”

Adrian started up the hill again and Jongin quickly followed behind. “Sometimes, Jongin, you need to use your instincts rather than your senses. And especially don’t rely on what your brain says too much.”

“What does that supposed to mean?”

Adrian came to a halt and spun around before Jongin jolted to a stop. His eyes pierced through Jongin’s, suddenly glaring at him. “You know what it means, Jongin. Stop thinking so much and trust your gut feeling.” He spat before turning on his heel.

Jongin clenched his jaw, struggling over the roots and damp soil to keep up with Adrian’s long legs’ strides. “I do trust my gut feelings.”

He heard Adrian snort. “Really? ‘Cause as far as I know, you are doing a terrible job with your instincts.”

A sudden rage filled his chest and he furiously grabbed Adrian’s arm, forcing him to turn. “You have something to say, Adrian?”

Adrian eyed Jongin’s hand around his arm and Jongin felt Adrian’s muscle flex under his grip before he released the arm, swallowing a little. “Actually, Jongin. I do. What are you doing with a Vampire?” he crossed his arms over his chest, eyebrows furrowing into a scowl.

He knew what happened the last time he told Adrian to not to interfere with his life. However, he could not help it as he pulled a grimace, scowling twice as hard as Adrian. “How is that any of your business?”

“How is that not my business? You’re an Alpha and you’re going against the most important rule. Sehun. Who is he to you, huh?”

Jongin’s throat suddenly felt tight. “He… he’s…”

“Your boyfriend. You made that pretty clear the night you came to my house.”

“I don’t… remember anything.” He murmured, frowning.

“Good. It’s good that you don’t remember it.” He started to turn.

“No, wait. We’re not causing anyone any harm.”

“You’re a teenager. I get it. I get that you want to fool around with boys like Sehun. But you’re forgetting that no matter what, he’s a bloodsucker.”

“What does that supposed to mean?! Hey!” he caught Adrian’s arm again and harshly yanked it. That was when Adrian snapped as he shoved Jongin hard enough that he was slammed against the tree behind him. Adrian splayed his palm on Jongin’s chest, growling internally. “Adrian.” Jongin gasped with Adrian’s strong heat surging all over his own body. His guts twisted into knots and turns with Adrian so close to him.

“You’re so fucking blind.” Adrian spat before he drew back completely and turned his back to Jongin. They stayed in silence for a moment with their breaths gushing out raggedly.

“How long… how long do you plan to avoid me? You… you haven’t… told me why you…” he trailed off, gnawing on his lower lip.

“Why I did that to you when I was drunk?”

“Y-yes…”

“No reason, Jongin.”

Jongin raised his brows. “No… reason?”

“Yeah.” He turned around and faced Jongin with a hard, merciless expression. Jongin’s heart skipped a beat as they stared at each other for a stretch. He had never seen Adrian look like this before.

“I mean… I don’t blame you, Adrian… but… you’re still wearing your wedding ring. And maybe… it’s time for you to move on. You’ve got to stop grieving. So I understand that you…” he trailed off again, unsure of how to continue. “But not… me.”

“I told you. I was drunk. It meant nothing to me.”

That… sent a pang to Jongin’s heart. For a minute, Jongin gaped at him with emptiness as his heart felt heavy. “It meant… nothing?”

Adrian didn’t answer the question. Instead, he said, “Look, Jongin. Whether you like it or not, you were chosen to be our Alpha. You need to take your responsibilities seriously. Do you know how many of the pack would be against you if they knew that you’re dating a Vampire?”

“If you care so much about being an Alpha, then maybe you shouldn’t have run away from your chance at being one.”

Adrian went completely still that moment.

Jongin gritted his teeth, hands balled into fists. “I’ve had enough of you and the others shoving me around, asking me to be someone that I’m not. Do you know how it feels to not being able to love someone you want to?!”

Adrian did not reply as his face withered.

“So what if I want to be with a Vampire? Maybe you guys should change your perception about them.” Jongin pushed. “I’m sure things would have been different if you were Alpha. But you’re not. And since I am, I don’t think I’m obligated to listen to you judge me.”

“I’m not… judging you, Jongin.” This time, Adrian’s tone was miserable. “I think I know how intimidating it is. How scared one can be about people judging them. You were judging me a moment ago. I did run away. For someone I loved. But I was giving an orphaned girl life. I wasn’t putting others in danger.”

Jongin felt his heart sink. He had not known Adrian for long. Adrian had only returned to the town—his hometown—after his studies abroad a few months before he fled with Lena. He didn’t know Adrian that well. In fact, he did not know anything about Adrian before Adrian moved back here with Lenz after Lena died, killed by a Vampire as Adrian had narrated. Adrian never shared the details of how his wife died. But he eloped with her only a couple of days after Lena’s single mother passed due to heart attack.

He gave her a life. Only that Lena did not have the chance live the life Adrian had offered her. If Adrian had stayed, the people would not have allowed him to marry a girl, or even mate with her who had no status. Lena had always been this cousin who played with second-hand ragdolls while Jongin and Kai were considered to be her well-off cousins. Jongin saw why Adrian fell in love with her, Lena, his shy, poor neighbour. She was the most perfect girl a man could find. If anything, she was clueless and innocent.

“I did leave, Jongin. Even though I knew that I was one of the Heirs. But you probably know how difficult it is to be an Alpha. As you said, you can’t be yourself and I’d rather not be someone I’m not. But that’s how things were and are.”

“So you just dumped it all on me and Kai.” Jongin scoffed.

“I always knew that Kai would be a great leader. Even as a boy, I saw it in him. But he’s ruthless. I knew that people would choose you.” His gaze was tender now as he spoke in a low voice. “And something told me that you’ll make a change. A good one to say the least.”

Jongin stood there, taken aback. He never knew that Adrian had even noticed him before. Surely Adrian knew that Jongin was one of the Heirs for the Choosing since he was around the age range with the right bloodline. But he had never thought that Adrian had given him this much attention. Both Adrian and Jongin’s fathers had been one of the first founders of the Werewolf circle in this town and that made them sort of the Alphas. But Adrian’s father was the First Alpha. When he died, Jongin took the title. By right, Adrian was supposed to compete with Kai and Jongin. But he did not. Adrian had more years to be trained and his father was someone who wanted his son to be on the top of the food chain. Jongin could only imagine Adrian as someone who was nothing like his father. But Adrian would have won the pack’s votes without a single effort. He had more skills in his little finger than Jongin and Kai combined. But now he used them to protect the town.

“I want the best for you, Jongin.” Adrian said at last, lowering his head. For the first time, Jongin saw submission in Adrian’s gaze. “I’m sorry that I touched you with wrong intentions that night. I’m sorry that… I left it everything to you. None of us wanted this. But this fell on your head. I just… Forget about it.” He shook his head, rubbing his jaw. “We should head back.”

Jongin couldn’t bring himself to utter even a word as he stood frozen. All this time, Adrian was just someone in the back, someone that did not mean anything to Jongin. He loved Lenz, yes. He was fond of the child. But not the father. However, this changed something within him.

“I won’t be much trouble for you anyway, Jongin.” He said, starting back in the way they came.

“What?”

“I came back for nothing. It’ll be better for me and Lenz if we just stay away from this town.”

“Wait, what?!” he caught Adrian’s t-shirt at the back and Adrian turned with an insincere smile. “You’re not being serious, are you? You just moved back!”

“Then ask me.”

Blinking his eyes blankly, he released Adrian’s t-shirt as Adrian curled a hand around his wrist. Jongin felt limp. “Ask… you what?”

“Ask me to stay.”

Jongin kept mum and Adrian smirked.

“Yeah. That’s what I thought.” He pulled his hand back from Jongin’s wrist.

“What do you want from me, Adrian?”

Adrian licked his lips and smiled a painful smile that threw Jongin off. “You can’t really give me what I want, Jongin.” He took a step back. “I’m not gonna take that away from you.”

“What are you talking about, Adrian?” Jongin almost lost his voice as his eyes stung a little. “Why are you doing this? Of all the people, why are you torturing me? Why are you… confusing me?”

Without replying, Adrian kept walking away. No. This will not do. Jongin had intended to get everything cleared out today. But all that Adrian did was confuse him even more. He silently followed after Adrian with blood pounding in his ears.

When they were back in the car, Adrian stayed static for a moment with his hands gripping the steering wheel without even bothering to start the engine. Jongin turned his face away, peering out the window, frowning deeper than ever. They had not found any clue, or maybe Adrian did with his instinct, but all that Jongin attained from this trip was a heavy heart and a bunch of bafflement. “Jongin.”

The second he heard Adrian’s voice, he faced him.

Adrian was not looking at him as he kept his eyes straight ahead. “Although I was a little tipsy… that… did mean something to me, Jongin.”

Jongin swallowed. “Adrian.”

Letting out a deep sigh, Adrian started the engine. “Let’s just get home.”

* * *

 

The excruciating and griping pain explored every inch of Sehun’s body, chewing every bit of nerve and muscle as it ate him, choking his throat and clenching his guts. He struggled to keep his feet as he spilled into the house through the front door and crashed the floor. “Arrghh…” Sehun cried, digging his nails into the side of his neck. It was swollen and throbbing, rupturing his veins. He sprawled himself on the floor, gasping in the dark. Rivulets of tears unconsciously trickled down the corners of his eyes due to the agonizing and murdering torture that numbed the right side of his entire body. His head pounded cruelly, forcing images and pictures that were long forgotten. His heart felt like it could burst at any moment. Gritting his teeth, Sehun forced himself to kneel before he collapsed to the floor again as he felt the pain as strong as one hundred daggers sinking into his stomach. Groaning and screaming with anguish, he writhed about on the floor, clutching his body. His eyes were watery with the sheer pain and his breathing came out in sharp, shallow rasps. Sweat dripped down the side of his face and covered his forehead in a thin sheen. "H-help!" he croaked, his desperate tone made his words almost inaudible, but they still echoed around the eerie, empty and dark hallway.

 _“Help!”_  An unfamiliar voice wailed, but the voice was not beyond Sehun’s ken.  _“Please, don’t kill me! Help me!”_  another cry. His eyes struggled to adjust to the dark but when he noticed the dirtied boots that were enclosing him, he clenched his eyes close again.

It was not too long before Sehun realized what was happening. He clasped his hands over his ears, curling into a ball on the cold floor, whimpering. “No, no! Go away!”

The man stood before him with blood dripping all over his body as he stared at Sehun with face begging in fear. The blood that was dribbling down the side of his neck startled Sehun but he was not able to move.  _“You killed me.”_  His voice was like an echo in the distant, but his expression quickly changed. “ _You disappoint me. You are nothing but a useless piece of trash!_ ”

Sehun jolted up to his feet and broke into a limping sprint towards the door. “Leave me alone!”

“ _Why did you kill me, Sehun?_ ” It was a female voice. This voice, Sehun remembered all too well. He spun around with a gasp. The man—his father—was gone. But Sehun froze with the Werewolf venom slowly eating his insides as he gaped at his mother who stood in the shadow of the hallway.

“M-ma? I didn’t… mean to.” He felt the sob choking his throat enlarge as he took a step away from the door and towards his mother. And then she stood out of the shadow. The moonlight that surged through the front door exhibited the blood on her neck and gown.

“ _Why, Sehun?_ ”

“No… no, no, no! You’re not real!” he dropped to the floor and covered the sides of his head with his arms, shutting his eyes. “Go away!”

“Hunnie?” the quiet, baby voice forced his eyes open again. The brightness stung his eyes and Sehun winced at the sunlight on his skin. The pain was gone.

Adjusting his vision, Sehun glanced over him at the sun rays that filtered through the canopy of trees. The chirps of jays and cuckoos were a harmonious sound that he had not heard in a very, very long time. He felt exhausted and limp as he dropped his eyes to the girl that stood before him. She pressed her small hands onto Sehun’s knees and smiled a smile that was so innocent and pure. She was dressed in rags with a dirty shawl around her neck. Her eyes. They resembled Sehun’s.

It was his sister.

“Hunnie, eh wan bewwie! Bewwie bewwie!” she chimed, pointing her little, scrawny finger at a wild berry bush. Sehun sat there, immobile and unable to believe what he was witnessing before him.

“Sehun!” Luhan’s voice boomed in the furthest corner of Sehun’s head. He blinked at his sister who was still waiting for him to get her the berries. “Sehun!”

He closed his eyes and when he opened them, it was dark again and he felt a soft flatness on his back. The canopy of trees was replaced by a white ceiling. The sunlight was replaced by darkness again. His blurry vision was invaded by Luhan’s hazy figure and Sehun’s head felt like it was being banged every time Luhan called his name. “Lu… Luhan.” He exhaled. The metal of the rail was cool under his hand as he gripped it to haul himself up. He grabbed the bedrail hard enough to make it rattle in its brace. Halfway there, he hesitated. It hurt. Far more than he'd expected, near blinding pain rippling through his body with every movement. For a second it even hurt to see. But he gritted his teeth and pulled through it, not willing to show the intruder just how bad of an idea it was to get up like that. He could feel the sweat dripping down his face, but he forced his left hand to stay on the bed, not letting himself reach up to wipe it away or press against his side where it felt like he was being ripped open all over again.

A hand was splayed on his forehead. “Sehun, what happened?” Luhan asked, pushing Sehun’s sweat drenched hair out of the forehead. “Sehun?”

He plunged his hand into his coat’s pocket and fished his phone out. “C-call… Jongin.” He panted, handing the phone out.

There was only Jongin he could call for now. It was not like any other Werewolf would help him right now anyway. Kai had won this time. But as soon as Jongin would come to know of this, it will be Sehun that was going to win.

Luhan frowned as he lowered the phone. “He’s not picking it up.”

“Try… again.”

The second and the third times were unsuccessful as well. “No. I can’t reach him.”

“Get… me… blood.”

“Here. Here.” He handed Sehun a blood bag and pressed its mouth to Sehun’s lips. “Oh God. What happened, Sehun?!”

Once Sehun had drained the blood bag, Luhan handed him another. “Get away from me, Luhan.” He rasped, struggling to shove Luhan’s shoulder away. “I’m… I’m hallucinating… Go. Leave!”

“No! I’m not gonna leave you like this! What should I do?!”

Sehun slammed the blood bag to the floor until the blood splattered as he jolted up with his fangs aiming for Luhan and hissed loud enough that Luhan staggered back with horror in his eyes. “Get the fuck out!”

He did not linger any longer as he hurried out of Sehun’s bedroom and Sehun ripped his coat and shirt off before he laid back on the bed, shirtless, with his entire body and face bathed in sweat. Beads of sweat broke out on his ashen face while he laid there, moaning and twitching in unbelievable pain.

Hours of the evening drifted by and Sehun was aware of every second of the agony. He whimpered into the pillow with tears and sweat wetting it thoroughly. He gave into the pain then. Something was ripping his soul away from his body and he allowed it as he laid there silently. Everything slowed around him before the world went lame. His mind was shutting down and his body felt like it was dying.

It was as if the process would never end. The silence and tranquillity of the world were in contrast to the tormenting pain Sehun was undergoing inside. But he was limp, too limp to even move.

“Hey.” The slender fingers that ran through his hair were soothing, if not calming. Sehun’s lips trembled as his eyes fluttered open. The boy that hovered above him was smiling, but Sehun could not recognize the face. He couldn’t perceive the face, but he knew him. The guy was familiar. But Sehun could not remember him. It was day again with sunlight surging through everywhere and he was lying on a prickling lawn of grass, against a tree. “Come on, Sehun. You should eat.”

Who was he?

He was in rags as well and there was a slice of bread in his hand. As Sehun sat up, he felt a pair of warm lips against his forehead before the guy brushed his lips on Sehun’s quivering lips.

He was hallucinating again.

Everything was washed away out of the sudden and Sehun fell into the abyss of darkness. The scent was what he noticed when he was back in the room. He inhaled a sharp breath as his eyes brewed fresh tears. “Jongin.” He whispered with a sob rising in his throat without opening his eyes. He broke into a cry, burying the side of his face into the pillow as he felt Jongin’s presence.

“Sehun.” Jongin’s voice was so quiet that Sehun barely heard it. He felt a weight shift on the mattress before he felt Jongin’s warmth against his back as Jongin pressed his chest against his back, draping an arm around his shivering body.

“Are you… really here?” he could not bring his head up or open his eyes. He did not dare. Jongin’s hand was hot against the bare skin of his waist.

“Yeah… Kai told me… about… what happened.” He breathed against Sehun’s ear. “Drink my blood, Sehun.”

Sehun remained still, crying silently as Jongin’s breath grazed his nape. “H-he… t-told you…” he mumbled to himself, falling sleepy.

“Please, Sehun. Take my blood.”

Sehun slowly opened his eyes but his sight was blurred. However, he was able to see the slash that had cut Jongin’s wrist open with his blood dripping off it. Sehun lidded his eyes again, unable to move.

And then he felt Jongin gently grabbing his chin before he turned Sehun’s face. Sehun was close to losing his consciousness when he felt Jongin’s lips press against his own. The warm metallic blood slid into Sehun’s mouth from Jongin’s and he lazily swallowed. As the blood glided down his tight throat, Sehun’s stomach fluttered and flitted as if a thousand butterflies with Jongin’s lips kissing his. Jongin pulled back and Sehun swallowed the rest of the blood. His eyes refused to open even if Sehun wanted them to. He melted into the bed as his nerves eased up. Then he felt Jongin’s palm cupping a side of his damp face before Jongin kissed him again. Sehun basked in Jongin’s ambience. Maybe it was his state that made the kiss all too tender and indulgent, but it felt like Sehun was human again. In a pain that was so beautiful. He could feel the warmth of Jongin’s breath brushing his upper lip as he pulled back from the chaste kiss.

“You can hate me tomorrow.” Jongin exhaled against his lips and Sehun wanted to ask what he was talking about, but instead, he turned back to his original position when Jongin shifted him and let sleep snatch him away.

* * *

 

Why he bit him? At that moment—no, not just at that moment. This constant fire within Kai kept growing bigger and more ferocious every time he was near Sehun. The obstinate feeling to domineer Sehun and his recalcitrant ways was eating Kai alive each and every second he neared Sehun. It was so strong that it almost pained him. It was not something that Kai could control. He had never been able to control his temperaments. He never knew that he would not be able to even control his feelings. Was it hate? Was it hostility and aversion that he felt towards Sehun? Or was it simply the urge to dominate over him? But of all the people, why Sehun? Why a Vampire? If anything, a Werewolf should only have the instinct to kill a Vampire. Not subjugate and have fun watching the Vampire suffer in pain. So why did he bite Sehun?

It would be reasonable enough to say that Kai himself was aware of the fact that it was to show Sehun that he could be dominated. So that he will fear him. But why he cured him?

This baffled Kai. The minute when Sehun lashed out, Kai knew that he was saying the truth. About his past. But that was not the reason Kai took pity on him. Not even close. He was not the type to pity anyone under any circumstances. So, then why?

Kai didn’t know. All that he did know was that when Sehun walked away from him, shrugging death off his shoulder as if it were no big thing, even if he were bit with lethal Werewolf venom surging through his veins, he did not beg for mercy. As much as Kai wanted Sehun to whimper for mercy when he was in his hands, he had succumbed—awfully and terribly—and he gave in. Kai had given in. That does not happen. That had never happened. This newfound feeling was both weird and… pleasuring.

As a Werewolf, he should have let Sehun die. As someone who hated Vampires from the core of his heart, he should have killed Sehun, not save him.

Kai dragged his feet up the stairs with his heart sinking to his stomach. His windpipe was choked and he struggled to breathe. He didn’t understand why he had done what he had done. But he felt like killing himself, if the guilt itself did not kill him first.

He had gone to Sehun’s place with only one intention—to grab Sehun by force whether he liked or not and feed him his blood. Or better, knock Sehun out of his sense and shove the blood down his throat. But he did not expect to find Sehun withering in his bed with his bare body drenched in sweat. He was on the verge of death and that was when Kai’s mind went completely blank. For a moment, he hoped that Sehun would notice his presence. But when he did, he was only thinking of Jongin. When Kai touched him, he felt Sehun’s body burn against his own. Everything that happened after that was something that Kai did not understand. Neither did he foresee the kiss.

He clenched his jaw and shook his head. No. It was not a kiss. Not a kiss.

“Kai!”

Kai jumped a little when he opened his room’s door and scowled at Jongin who jolted up from his bed. “Where the hell were you?!”

“I was… away… with Adrian. Where were you?” His eyes were filled with both concern and curiosity. “Mom said that you were looking for me.”

Kai gritted his teeth, closing the door behind him. “You were with Adrian?”

Jongin blinked rapidly as his cheeks coloured. “Yes. Was there an emergency?”

“Mom told me that you won’t be back till tomorrow.”

“Adrian suggested that we go home since we didn’t find anything.” His nose scrunched a little before his eyes darted to Kai’s slashed wrist. Gasping, he hurried to Kai’s side and grabbed his wrist. “What happened?!”

“Nothing.” Kai pulled his hand back and Jongin glowered.

“Why are you being such a fucking prick, Kai? If something’s wrong, tell me.”

“It’s not something that concerns you. Not everything revolves around you.” He sighed, shoving past Jongin and made his way to the bathroom to grab the first aid kit. Well, it really did not concern Jongin. For once, this was something that Kai shared with Sehun and vice versa. Them alone.

“Then why were you looking for me, huh?”

“To ask you if you had some condoms, but then I realized that you probably wouldn’t.” he scoffed, rummaging through the cupboard for the first aid kit.

“That… was your emergency?”

“Yes. It’s a huge emergency. Can you imagine?” he harshly pulled the box out of the cupboard and proceeded for his bed. Jongin looked flustered as he gaped at Kai.

“Suit yourself. But I know that you’re hiding something.”

“Yippee. Ten points for Madonna’s gay best friend for figuring out something totally obvious.”

Jongin was silent for minutes as Kai struggled with the antiseptic. Then he let out an audible sigh before he flumped on Kai’s bed and snatched the first aid kit from his brother. “Give me that.”

“I’m perfectly capable of—”

“You can’t even put a plaster on your small finger.”

Kai surrendered. He was too tired to bother anymore. He just wished that he could call it a day. He sat there, trying to not to wince as Jongin cleaned the wound that would be healed by dawn. “You smell like jungle and Adrian.”

Jongin smirked, keeping his eye on the cut. His smirk quickly faltered when he realized that he was grinning. “What are you talking about?” he murmured, winding the bandage around Kai’s wrist.

“You need to stop acting like you don’t find Adrian attractive ‘cause you’re a piss at it.”

“Stop it, Kai. I don’t find him attractive.”

Kai bit the inside of his cheek and tipped Jongin’s chin up to meet his eyes. His fingers lingered under Jongin’s chin as their eyes locked and Jongin licked his lips. “You’re gonna choose that bloodsucker over Adrian?”

“I said stop it.” He turned his face away and continued with the bandage. “It’s not what you think, okay?”

“Are you really that dumb or are you just having fun fooling around with people?”

Jongin snapped this time. “What the hell is your problem?! I’m fooling around with people?! I’m with Sehun and that’s it. Adrian means absolutely nothing to me. And what the fuck do you even know, Kai? You don’t know half of the things that’s happening!”

“Really?! How about the fact that Adrian had imprinted…” he trailed off, biting his tongue and Jongin raised his brows.

“Imprinted on?”

“Nothing.”

“Kai? What is it?”

“Are you done?” he pulled his hand back and probed the bandage before falling back on the bed. Draping an arm over his eyes, Kai let out a deep breath.

“Kai, I know that we fight. A lot. But that doesn’t mean that I’m not worried about you. We’re brothers nevertheless. So if you’re in some kind of trouble, then tell me.”

Kai remained silent as his breathing calmed. Then he felt Jongin’s hand splaying on his chest with his heart beating under Jongin’s palm. He pulled his arm off his face and peered at Jongin who looked disappointed. He then got off the bed before pulling his shirt off. Kai stared at him without blinking. Jongin had a good body. Lithe but fit and powerful all the same. Of course it was. Or else, Kai doubted that Jongin would be able to keep up with their physical fights.

Jongin snatched Kai’s blanket off the bed before spreading it on the floor. “Whoa whoa. What are you doing?” Kai rasped when Jongin settled down on the floor.

“Good night, brother.” He muttered, turning his back to Kai. It felt like Jongin did not want to be alone tonight. Werewolves loved being with their pack. So Kai understood if Jongin wanted to be around him. But why tonight? Did something happen between him and Adrian?

No matter how he thought about it, the only thing that was now standing between Jongin and Adrian was Sehun. Adrian was planning to take it slow—explained his occasional visits using Lenz as an excuse. But by the looks of it, he will never get Jongin now. For all that Kai knew, Adrian was a rational man. If Jongin weren’t interested, then he would not even lean towards Jongin anymore. For some odd reason, Kai felt as if that were a complete bummer for him. It was not like he was rooting for Adrian and Jongin, but he just needed Jongin out of his way for once. He needed Adrian to make a move on Jongin because Jongin deserved someone like Adrian. Not someone like Sehun.

Jongin was no match for Sehun.

 

* * *

 

There was a jittery feeling in his belly, his palms were sweating and a flutter of electricity ran through his body when entered the school. The euphoric, giddy, nervous, exhausted and confused were an interplay of convoluted emotions that had Sehun in a jade. Unlike feeling out of his mind, this kind of confusion included him being unsure about what was happening or if it were actually real. The confusion was murderous.

But it was as if he were brought alive. His heart was set on fire. And no matter how hard Sehun tried, from the moment he woke up this morning, he could not think straight. All the pain and torture he had undergone last night were replaced by something so chill and euphoric in the morning when he woke up to the lingering kiss of Jongin’s lips on his own lips. He could not see anything clear anymore. He was not even sure if Jongin had stayed with him all night long, but he felt Jongin’s warmth all over him when he roused.

No. He’d rather kill himself, rip his own heart out than hurt Jongin after this. Amidst of all that torture was the love. Jongin’s love. And Sehun was ready to accept it regardless of the consequences that he would have to face. He could think about the consequences tomorrow. Right now, he just wanted to see Jongin face to face and kiss him. Confess his feelings for him.

Even if all it were hallucinations—yes, he did think about the possibility of it all being an hallucination when he got up in the morning—he finally knew that he wanted Jongin. It proved something. Even if Sehun did not really feel love towards Jongin prior to this, last night evidently triggered something within him. He felt human again.

And Kai. Why did Kai tell Jongin in the first place? He bit Sehun. He could have let Sehun die. Why did he save Sehun? Why did he jeopardize his relationship with Jongin in order to save Sehun? Did Jongin even spare Kai after that? So many questions and Sehun felt like his head might burst that instant. He broke into a slow jog to Jongin’s locker where he found him, fiddling with his phone.

“Jongin!” he yelped and Jongin looked up at him, grinning from ear to ear before Sehun pounced him, pulling him into a merciless hug.

“Whoa.” Jongin laughed, wrapping his arms around Sehun’s body.

Drawing back, Sehun grabbed the sides of Jongin’s face and let out a shaky breath. “Last night.” He panted and Jongin blankly blinked.

“Yeah?”

“After what happened last night, Jongin, I…” his hands slid down Jongin’s chest as he licked his lips.

“What is it, Sehun?”

“I love you, Jongin.”

Jongin stood there, motionless and frozen with an empty expression. “Wh… what?”

Sehun raised his brows. “I love you.”

Jongin dropped his hands from the sides of Sehun’s waist with blood filling his cheeks. “I… I love you, too, Sehun.”

There was no soul in Jongin’s pledge. Sehun felt lifeless as he watched Jongin fumble for words. “What is it, Jongin?”

“No. I just found that sort of sudden.”

“Well, after last night, I… I just…”

“Last night? You… know what happened last night?” he went completely red as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Sehun’s jaw tightened. “I know… what happened last night?”

“Me and Adrian.”

“You and Adrian?”

“I was out with him.”

“You… were… with  _him_?”

“Yes?”

Sehun almost heard his heart drop to his stomach. “Oh.”

“Sehun, we… need to talk.”

“Yeah.” He murmured, leaning back on the lockers, casting his gaze low. Everything felt too real to be just hallucinations last night. Too real. Too good.

“Something happened between me and Adrian.” Jongin’s voice was a bare whisper. “I swear… I didn’t mean any of it to happen.”

Sehun closed his eyes. “You weren’t there.” He sighed under his breath.

“Huh?”

When his eyes flew open, he glanced over at Jongin and frowned. That was when his eyes darted past Jongin’s shoulder and landed on Kai who strutted through the door, cladded in a red v-neck t-shirt under a black hoodie and ripped jeans with his ruddy hair hidden under his hoodie. His eyes landed on Sehun immediately but he broke the eye contact even quicker, proceeding to his locker.

“Sehun?” Jongin called and Sehun’s brows furrowed into a scowl as he kept his gaze on Kai who was obviously trying to avoid him.

“Fuck, no.” Sehun hissed and brushed past Jongin, marching straight up to Kai. He grabbed Kai’s hoodie by the shoulder and yanked it until Kai was facing him with a glare.

“You’ve got no other better work to do than to bother completely innocent citizens in the morning?” Kai snorted, slamming his locker shut.

“It was you last night.” There was no word to describe the sort of rage that filled Sehun’s chest at the moment. He wanted to rip Kai’s head off.

“What?” Kai cockily raised a brow.

“You fucking bit me.” Sehun kept his voice as low as possible. “What the hell were you doing last night trying to save me after biting me?”

“I have absolutely no idea about what you’re talking about, Goldilocks. I bit you? Are you  _hallucinating_? As much as I’d love to bite you, I believe that that’s your area of expertise.” he scoffed and was about to walk past Sehun before Sehun grabbed hold of his arm. “Hey!” Kai faked a whine when Sehun hauled him into the toilet nearby. He snickered a little, “Why am I enjoying this?”

Hauling him into a stall, Sehun locked the stall and slammed Kai up the wall before blocking him by pinning his hands on the wall, on either sides of Kai’s head. “Spill it.”

“Spill what?” Kai was trying to grin, but it was faltering. It was as if he were nervous.

“I know that I wasn’t hallucinating! Jongin wasn’t there. He has no idea of anything that had happened!  _You_  were there!”

Kai’s smirk was completely washed away and he gave Sehun’s chest a ferocious shove until Sehun jerked back and banged against the wall. “Yeah. It was me. So?” he edged closer, pressing a palm to the wall above Sehun’s head. “What are you gonna do about it?”

Sehun stood there gaping for a moment before he exploded. “What the fuck is wrong with your head?! You bit me in the first place! And then you come bearing the cure?!”

“Do you want me to be honest, Sehun?”

Sehun blinked. He honestly had no idea what to make of this. Everything turned upside down in a single second. How much more stupid could he have gotten?

Kai curled a hand around his throat and Sehun remained still. Kai wasn’t clutching. He was simply holding Sehun’s neck. For a moment, Sehun thought that Kai might snap it. But then Kai leaned closer before pressing his lips on the side of Sehun’s neck where he had bitten yesterday.

* * *

 

“Is this where I  _bit_?” Kai breathed against the kissed skin of the neck, sending an electric jolt down Sehun’s frozen spine. Kai’s body was almost arching into Sehun’s as the tip of his nose brushed the side of the neck. Sehun remained inert as if rooted to the spot. That instant, he took every bit of Kai in. He deemed and appraised every motion of Kai’s breath, radiation of his coltish body’s heat and the jerks of his powerful hands that were digging into the wall behind Sehun. His scent was what overwhelmed both Sehun’s thoughts and physicality. Kai nuzzled his nose into the neck before dragging up the side, inhaling a sharp breath which left Sehun completely perplexed and paralysed. He wanted to push Kai away. He should break his face for playing with him like this. But instead, he found himself revelling in Kai’s arrogance and urge of sheer control, if not dominance. He reeked of it. “Maybe I should have left a mark for Jongin to see.” His whisper was like daggers against Sehun’s ear and his lips that were pressed upon his earlobe felt just as sharp as his whispers. “You were almost as weak as you are now last night.”

_He’s playing. He’s fooling with you._

Sehun’s eyes snapped open and he drove Kai back with a brutal shove on his chest. Staring at Kai in horror, his jaw fell to the ground when he acknowledged Kai’s smirk. “What the hell are you doing?” Sehun’s voice barely reached a bar above whisper as his throat tightened.

Kai shrugged. “Did you enjoy my mercy last night? You’re alive. You should really thank me for it, don’t you think? Oh and I just realized how pathetic you are in reality last night. I might just take it easy on you from now on since you’re so stupid. You really shouldn’t let me near you with your guard down again. Like just now.”

Sehun frowned, but quickly hid the frown away. Kai had a point. After what happened yesterday, he should stay away from Kai, with his guard up at all times. Instead, here he was, trapped in a cramped toilet stall with less than half a meter distance between them. That had to be the most ignorant move ever. But then again, Sehun knew better. Once he showed a sign of fear, Kai will cling to it. Therefore, he’d rather wear a reckless bitch face than a safe one. That ought to irk Kai more anyway. “I’ll take advices from you when you stuff a whole pot roast up your ass.” Sehun spat and ripped the door open before bursting out of the stall. He heard Kai chuckle monotonously behind him and spun around to face him. “Besides, you were the one who bit me in the first place for fun. And FYI, I didn’t ask for your mercy. I was in a state where my mind could not process anything right.”

“You’re in that state 24/7.”

Sehun clenched his jaw and fists. “My point is… whatever that happened last night, it was because I thought you were Jongin.”

“I know.” Kai shrugged again as if he had it all figured. “But now I can see that you cannot distinguish between my scent and Jongin’s.” A corner of his lips quirked up into a smirk as Sehun’s face died. “That ought to be a bummer for you, ain’t it?” his smirk widened and he licked his lips, grazing it a little with his teeth.

“I told you. I wasn’t in my right mind.” He turned to meet the set of mirrors before him and noticed Kai’s reflection, grinning in victory. Sehun forced himself to not to frown. He felt betrayed. Everything that he had felt from the minute he woke up in the morning was not because of Jongin. Not for him at least. To even think that Kai had made him feel that way was appalling and disgusting. Only someone as vile as Kai would bother to play with others’ feelings. Sehun’s chest ached for a second. The confusion was murderous.

_Only someone as vile as Kai would bother to play with others’ feelings._

Wasn’t Sehun playing with Jongin’s feelings as well?

Sehun gripped on the edge of the sink counter and slouched forward, gnawing on his lip. It hurt. And Jongin would probably be just as hurt as Sehun was now when he would find out about everything. Or possibly even worse. Sehun closed his eyes for a moment. “Did you…” he started in a whisper. “…kiss me last night?”

Kai was silent. Sehun opened his eyes and met with Kai’s still smirking reflection. “Well, you sure have dirty fantasies about me.”

Turning on his heel, Sehun almost jabbed Kai in the face. “So you didn’t.”

“Wow. How fucked were you last night? Why the fuck would I kiss you?! I can assure you that even if you suddenly transform into the most attractive version of Beyoncé, I wouldn’t snog you.” He stepped closer. “You know why? Because you’re a fucking  _leech_. I did feed you my blood. Because it was never my intention to kill you. Not yet at least. My brother still needs to know what sort of poser you are. And there’s definitely something about you that you haven’t exactly revealed. I’m never gonna buy that ‘I-moved-here-for-more-experience’ bullshit. I’m gonna button down what’s the reason you’re here and why of all the people, you seem to be  _attracted_ to the First Alpha who’s also a complete diva on a Kardashian level. And then, I’m gonna make sure that none of your kind would ever have it easy here in this town.”

“Why is it so difficult for you to believe that I don’t have any sort of hidden agenda? I like Jongin. And that’s it.”

“Fine.” He retreated with a smug smile playing on his lips. “If you insist that you’re made for each other. Get him to mate with you.”

“He already offered once.”

“Ah. Goldilocks, the chances of my knotting inside my brother is higher than him knotting in you.”

Sehun blinked. He had yet to get a grasp around the whole knotting thing. “What?”

“Go figure.” He winked before exiting the toilet.

Jongin vaguely told him that  _knotting_  counted as mating. What the hell did that even mean? Most of all, Sehun was surprised that there was actually certain things that he did not know.

Gritting his teeth, Sehun stormed out of the toilet, gripping the strap of his bag and was forced to a halt when he spotted Jongin outside, leaning against a wall with his arms crossed against his chest. He was both frowning and scowling at the same time. Sehun was not sure if he were madder at himself for thinking that he was head over heels in love with Jongin after last night or for believing that Kai had kissed him. “Sehun.” Jongin called in a raspy tone, glaring almost viciously. “Mind telling me what you were doing with Kai?”

Sehun shook his head and walked right past him. “I’ve got no time for this.”

And that was when Jongin grabbed his arm, pulling him to a stop. “What’s wrong? Why are you behaving so weirdly today?”

“ _I’m_  behaving weirdly?” he pulled his arm free. “I don’t even know what’s up with  _you_ every single day. If you’re not interested in me anymore, then just be straightforward about it.”

“What are you talking about?” his frown overtook the scowl. “Sehun, few minutes ago, you just… confessed that you—”

“Yeah. To which you replied as if you were ordering some extra cheese for your pizza.” He scoffed and turned to walk away.

“Se…” Jongin trailed off behind him.

 

 

 

 

 Sehun returned his gaze back to the book, trying to keep himself distracted from the rain that attacked him through the closed window. He never really knew why, but such rains made his heart swell. His lips reminded him that he had been kissed in the very rain, touched with love, embraced with affection. But his mind refused to believe it for that he never remembered it happening. Sometimes, there were holes in his memory. There were things that he had experienced, but he never recalled them.

He momentarily closed his eyes. 

Sehun’s eyes flashed open when Luhan entered the bedroom, soaked in the rainwater. “God, I hate the rain!” he rasped, ruffling his drenched hair before he flumped on the chair at Sehun’s desk.

“You hate it?” Sehun muttered under his breath, lowering his attention to the book which did not enlighten him on anything about  _knotting_.

“Yes. And it rains so much here. I wish it was sunny all the time.” he sighed. “Your new car is here. What is it? Maserati?”

“Hm.”

“What happened to your old car?”

Sehun closed the book and swung his legs over the edge of his bed. “Do you know anything about knotting?”

Luhan’s brows rose. “Ye…yeah? The dogs’ knotting?”

“Yes.”

“Well, that’s just… what…” he stuttered, flushing a little. “You don’t know?”

“I googled it and it said some gibberish stuff about wolfs.”

“Well, precisely that’s it.”

Sehun cocked a brow. “What’s it? It said something about the male wolf’s penis swelling and the female wolf’s vagina walls contracting. Or something like that.”

Luhan was quiet for a stretch, licking his lips. “That’s basically it.”

“You’re saying that… even Werewolves—”

“Yes!” he blurted out. “Oh, did you know about the killings?”

Sehun let out a heavy breath, unsure of how the Werewolves’ anatomy worked. “What killings?”

“There had been two today.”

“Two?”

Luhan nodded his head. “Everyone’s going crazy downtown. The blame’s falling on Vampires and Viw is trying his best to keep his head low so that the Werewolves won’t… pounce us.”

Sehun’s brows furrowed as his eyes narrowed. “Who’s Viw?”

“He’s sort of the cult’s leader.” Luhan shrugged. “Downtown at least. He knows some stuff about the killings and I heard some people say that it’s a Vampire’s doing.”

“But no one kills here, right?”

“No. That’s why it’s creating a turmoil. Officer Adrian is giving Viw a hard a time.”

“Adrian.” Sehun muttered to himself. Heaving a sigh, he jolted upright and grabbed his coat and car keys.

“Where are you going?”

“Downtown. I need to meet this Viw.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to the address Luhan gave, Viw lives in a night bar.

Sehun stood outside the bar and squinted at the neon sign that said ‘Nightwalkers’. Ironic. Very ironic. Tugging at his coat, Sehun scrolled through the ‘missed calls’ list on his phone and sighed when he realized all of them were from Jongin. “ID?” asked the guard at the entrance and Sehun shot him a knowing look. Bowing his head, the guard stepped aside and as soon as Sehun entered the bar, he caught the whiff of humans. Every single one of them in the bar was a human. The customers at least. The bartenders were dressed in a scanty amount of clothes—girls in short skirts and tube tops and guys, shirtless with leather pants.

“Can I help you?”

Sehun turned to face the pale-faced woman who was wearing a lewd grin on her chili red lips. Her fake eyelashes and frizzy ginger hair were a sore to the eyes, but other than that, she was attractive. More than attractive. Her cleavage revealed almost half of her breasts and the blouse was short enough to expose her navel ring. “Umm… I need to see Viw.”

“Viw?” she chortled and curled her arm around Sehun’s neck, pressing her other palm on Sehun’s chest. “Why Viw? Won’t I be enough to entertain you, porcelain?” she purred, latching her hipbones on Sehun’s. “Who are you? All shiny and new.” She cooed, fingers playing with Sehun’s hair at the nape. “I’ve never seen you around here.” She dragged her painted nail along Sehun’s jawline as Sehun gripped the sides of her waist.

“I’d really appreciate if you could bring me to Viw.”

She rolled her eyes and drew back before hooking her fingers around Sehun’s belt at the front and tugged him forward. “This way, baby.”

Sehun let her drag him up the dark stairway and when they reached a maroon door, the woman grabbed him by the neck and pressed her lips on his cheek. “I’d love to have your fangs all over me if you’d like, porcelain. What’s your name?”

“Sehun.”

“Ah. I’m Donna.”

Smirking, Sehun squeezed her ass before she knocked on the door. When it was opened, she leaned against the doorframe and the black shirted guy scowled at her. “What?”

“He’s here to see Viw.” She told him in a totally different tone. Hard tone.

“Viw’s not here.”

Donna faced Sehun with smug look. “That’s a bummer, porcelain. But he’d be here tomorrow.”

Letting out an obvious sigh, Sehun plunged his hands into his coat and nodded his head. “All right.”

“Perhaps I could be of service for you tonight?”

Sehun licked his lips. Had it been any other night, he would not have thought twice before bringing her home, but right now, he was not in the mood. On the other hand, this could be a good distraction. “Some other time.” He smirked before heading down the stairs.

“Playing hard to get, huh?” she chuckled and Sehun smiled to himself.

When he gushed out of the bar, he winced at the cold air that blew on his face before he started for his car. He froze when he sensed Kai… or Jongin’s scent and turned around sharply. “Are you fucking following me?!” he gasped when he spotted Kai slumped against a wall, dragging on a cigarette and puffing out clouds of thick smoke. He was cladded in his black leather jacket, black jeans and black boots with a black t-shirt inside. Only his hair stood out quite prominently under the street light.

“No.” Kai wasn’t even looking at him as he spoke, eyes half droopy. He was… drunk.

Sehun fumbled for the keys in his pocket and turned to the car. But that was when his arm was gripped before he was pulled to turn around. “I swear to God if you even—”

“Oh, calm your tits.” Kai mumbled, wheezing the smoke out on Sehun’s face before flicking the cigarette. “You just happen to be in my territory.”

“This is…  _your_ territory? Why are you everywhere?!”

“I was thinking about asking you the same thing.” His voice was a low growl and his breath reeked of alcohol and cigarette. “What are you doing here? Looking for Viw?”

“So you were following me.” He scoffed, shaking his head. “That is none of your business.”

“Viw is definitely not the kind of guy you should be looking for.”

“I’d rather him than you any day.” He gave Kai a light shove and sent him staggering a step back. He spun around for the car’s door again and Kai hauled him by his coat before slamming him back against the car and his hands fisted around Sehun’s coat’s collars. “Jesus fucking Christ. What the  _hell_  is your problem?!”

“I can’t stop thinking about you.” Kai blurted out, expressionless and breathless. “And there you are. Every fucking time I don’t want to see you, you show up right in front me.”

“Yeah, same here. You know, for someone who doesn’t wanna waste a single minute on me, you sure have lots of time in your hands for bothering me. I’m not sure if anyone had told you this before, but you’re extremely—”

“Oh, fuck’s sake, shut up.” Kai hauled his coat’s collar and Sehun jerked forward, lurching into Kai’s body. Their lips almost touched and Sehun felt his entire body crumble when Kai shoved him back before their lips met. He spun around with a ferocious growl as Sehun stood there, hidden behind Kai, jaded and giddy. “What are you doing here?”

“Kai? What are  _you_  doing here with a leech?” asked a man who appeared out of nowhere with a group of men around him. Sehun blinked with blood pounding in his ears. Werewolves.

* * *

 

Sehun was not quite certain of what had his heart thundering, yowling and protesting vociferously— Kai’s out of the sudden  _onslaught_  or the fact that he was surrounded by a huge group of powerfully built Werewolves with the last person on earth that Sehun would actually want to be with right now. For all that he knew, Kai could drive him straight towards the pack of Werewolves like a sacrificial goat. However, he stood there, unstirring in quiescence and paralysis. His lips were quivering and he wondered if his hands were capable of trembling as well. He just might, considering that – without a single doubt – Kai was aiming to…  _kiss_  him. There could be no another reason for him to haul Sehun by the collars until their breaths intermingled. An almost lips-on-lips before he was shoved back against the car with couple nerves rupturing in anxiety and shock. The sort of electric jolt that Kai had just given him was not anything like Sehun had undergone in his entire life. It felt like he had just died for the second time. As if Kai had ripped his non-existent soul away. When he believed that Jongin had come to him the other night, kissed him, fed him his blood, saved him a night full of agony, it gave Sehun life. He believed that Jongin had enlivened, vivified and rejuvenated him. In all those years, Sehun had never felt anything quite like it. But everything was swept away the second he understood that none of it had happened. Kai said that he did not kiss him. Then what exactly on earth was he doing now?

While Jongin brought him back to life, made him feel human again, Kai electrified him, shredding and pulling his soul into pieces. That was how it felt when Sehun was almost kissed by him a moment ago. The sort of aura that Kai emitted would suck a sane man into the abyss of deliration and absolute lunacy. Sehun was on the brink of breaking down and snapping Kai’s neck. But if only he could move first.

“That’s for me to know and… well, just for me to know.” Kai rambled, drunk as a pissed goat. He even stumbled a step back and almost fell against Sehun’s brand new Maserati GranTurismo that he had purchased after Kai had the previous car half destroyed for nothing but fun.

The head of the pack shot Sehun a glaring and judgmental look as he advanced forward with his hands stuck into his pants’ pockets. “I’ve never seen you here.”

Sehun gulped, glancing over at Kai who had his head hung low, shaking it unsteadily. He looked like he might pass out at any second now. “Isn’t he the new leech that moved in recently?” asked another and the guy at the front turned to scowl.

“Ah. So you’re the one.” He spat, snickering a little. “Kai, haven’t you heard? There had been quite a number of killings, all drained out of blood in the past few weeks. You don’t think your little bloodsucker friend here has anything to do with it, do you?”

Sehun felt a huge lump rise up his throat.  _Drained of blood?_ That did sound like something a Vampire would do, but as far as Sehun was aware of, he had only fed on one girl since he had come here and he was sure that Kai had disposed her well. He peered at Kai who was silent with his eyebrows furrowed in annoyance as if these people were nagging him. Sehun expected Kai to sell him off or at least tell those Werewolves that Sehun was indeed involved in the killings. Sehun’s whole body shuddered when he realized that Kai might just spill the beans about the missing girl in school. But instead of all those things, Kai replied—in a rather vexed and irritated tone, “He’s not my friend.”

Sehun helplessly blinked at Kai, unable to believe how drunk he was. No wonder he was trying to kiss him. He must be confused as hell. Well, Sehun definitely was. He never thought that he would ever see Kai at his most vulnerable. “In that case, can we have a word with him?”

Glancing back at the tall, huge guy who stood before the group like a leader, Sehun tightened his jaw. “What do you want with me?” he shot at the Werewolves.

“I heard that you’re a rebel. And in case you weren’t informed, we don’t tolerate rebels here. Is it really a coincidence that you happen to be roaming around the very place where a murder had happened? Who are you?”

“Fuck.” Kai hissed and stepped forward, putting himself between the Werewolves and Sehun again. “Piss off, Karm. I’m not in the mood for this.”

The guy at the front, whose name was apparently Karm did not retreat. “Wait, you’re siding with this leech? Kai, who is he?”

“Not anyone of your goddamn business.” He mumbled, pulling a cigarette out and stuck it between his lips. “Trust me. I wouldn’t bother with him if I were you.”

Karm looked sceptical, but it was honest and obvious to see that he had a respect for Kai. As Kai lighted the cigarette, Karm came forth with a hard expression. “Why not? Is he someone  _you’re_ concerned with?”

Blowing out a cloud of smoke, Kai scoffed. “As a matter of fact, yes. Take your interrogation elsewhere ‘cause he’s mine to pick on.”

Karm’s eyebrows rose. “Why didn’t you say so?” he laughed and shrugged it off. “I’m taking your word for it.”

“Oh no, don’t. By all means, you can try and hurt him. I can assure you that you lot will be going home as headless.”

This time, Karm looked baffled. “What?”

“Oh, don’t worry.  _I_  won’t be the one hurting you, of course. What makes you think he’s helpless and lame?”

Was that a…  _compliment_? Sehun grimaced at Kai. He could never button down what sort of guy Kai was. He was by far the most complicated person Sehun had ever come across.

“You think that fucking leech could take on all of us?!” Karm yapped, balling his hands into fists.

_No, Kai. Don’t reply. Don’t you dare make a retort!_

“Darn straight.”

_Fuck you._

Sehun clenched his teeth, wanting to just silently slip into his car and drive off. He literally did not want to do this right now, as much as he’d love to break every one of those jaws.

“We’ll see about that.” Karm growled, starting past Kai before Kai pressed a hand to his chest, driving him backwards.

“Not tonight.” Kai sighed. “Kill him some other day when I’m not so pissed. I’d like to watch it with full heart and mind.”

Tightening his fist, Sehun fought the urge to slap the back of Kai’s head so hard that it would tumble off his spine. As Karm and his group of Werewolf boys walked away, Sehun received a handful of stink-eyes before Kai turned around to face him with cheeks blown with red, defined flushes. His eyes were almost lidded as he pinned his hands onto the car behind Sehun, blocking and capturing him between his arms. “What… the… actual—”

“Fuck?” Kai’s voice was a low snarl when he cut Sehun off. His eyes fixedly lingered on Sehun’s lips before he dragged on his cigarette and replaced his hand on the car. “I just saved your life.”

“More like put it on the line. You could have just served me on a silver platter. Why the hell were you provoking them?!”

“Because you keep on provoking  _me_.” He edged closer, almost pressing their bodies together. Sehun turned his face away, wincing hard at the stench of Kai’s breath.

“What are you doing?” The question came out in a whisper as Sehun refused to even look at Kai. He was playing with him again. That was obvious to see.

“You’re not gonna thank me, are you?” he purred, tilting his head, inching his face closer.

That was it. Sehun ducked under Kai’s arm and released himself from him, but before he was completely freed, Kai snatched the car keys from his hand. “Kai,  _come_ …  _on_!” he squawked in dismay when Kai deliberately slumped against his car, pocketing the car keys while dragging on the cigarette. “I’ve no time for your crap.”

“Do you know that we can imprint on practically anyone?”

Sehun raised a brow. “How is this relevant to me wanting to jam a rock into your face right now?”

Kai threw his head back and stared at the sky for a moment before looking down at Sehun again. “Girls, guys, children, babies, grandmas, grandpas, and even Lindsay Lohan. As… someone said, ‘We can't choose our fate, but we can choose others. Be careful in knowing that.’

“J.K. Rowling.”

“Yes, precisely. My point is…” he pulled away from the car and wobbled over to Sehun. He fixed his eyes on Sehun’s, dropping his cigarette to the ground and raised a hand to Sehun’s cheek. Again. The heat. The electric jolt.

Sehun almost gasped when Kai cupped a side of his face before his other hand rose to Sehun’s other cheek. “Wh…” he stopped himself when he realized Kai was staring at his lips now.

“Sehun…” he breathed, killing Sehun with his piercing gaze. “I swear…. not… even… a sewer rat would imprint on  _you_.” He spat and dropped his hands from Sehun’s.

Biting his tongue harder than he should have, Sehun fisted his hand. “Give me back my car keys!”

That was when Kai staggered forward until his chest collided against Sehun’s and he pushed Sehun back, latching his hands on Sehun’s hips. They stopped when Sehun was pinned against the lamppost. Kai sheepishly grinned, eyes travelling all over Sehun’s face. Just about how many times had Kai blocked Sehun? How many times he had Sehun against something? This bastard surely liked to oppress people.

“Go home, Kai.” Sehun said tiredly. “You smell like shit.”

“And you smell so damn good.” He purred, hands suddenly gripping Sehun’s hips. “Do you know what I wanna do right now?”

Sehun remained mum, staring into Kai’s deep and dark gaze.

Kai leaned forward to Sehun’s ear and whispered, “Fuck you… so hard… until you scream… and bleed, yet still… beg for me… to keep going.”

“Very funny, Kai. Get off me.”

Kai did not pull away. Instead, he dropped his face onto Sehun’s shoulder and went completely limp against Sehun.

“Kai?”

Kai almost dropped to his knees before Sehun caught him, wrapping an arm around his body. “Mor… bee… doo.” He mumbled as Sehun lifted him up to stand properly.

“Are you kidding me?! What the fuck, you lameass douchebag!”

Kai threw himself onto Sehun, moaning. Grunting and gritting his teeth, Sehun struggled to reach for the back pocket of Kai’s tight and when he slid his hand into the pocket, Kai hissed, falling even heavier onto Sehun, nuzzling his nose into the crook of Sehun’s neck. With a string of curse words surging through his mind, Sehun pulled the car keys out. The way Kai’s body merged with his own was murderous beyond description. It felt like a thousand amperages of electricity. It might have been because of the fact that Kai was on the dominant tier of Werewolves, thus he emitted a stronger emanation of heat and auras. But it was not something in Sehun’s mind. He was literally burning Sehun with his touch.

Pushing Kai off him, he jumped back and let Kai collapse to the ground before he jolted to his car and got in. When he peered out the window after starting the engine, Kai was stirring on the platform like a legitimate drunken homeless. Sehun bit his lip. The fucker did save him from the Werewolves tonight, even if he did it in the worst way possible. It would be nice to have Kai in his debt for once.

Heaving a sigh, he stepped out of the car momentarily and crouched beside Kai. “Get up.” he effortlessly pulled Kai to his feet and let him drape an arm over his shoulders.

“You…” Kai exhaled, falling heavily against Sehun as he was brought to the car. “Bite me.”

Groaning, Sehun stuffed Kai into the backseat. 


	4. Three

“Kai!” Sehun hollered when Kai deliberately plunged against him with his arm tightening around Sehun’s neck.

“Nyoos chur… sthuper strength ah… and… carry me.” He chuckled a drunken laugh and his fetid breath stroked Sehun’s cheek. He was dragging Sehun along with him, wobbling his way up the short steps of the veranda. “Like a… bwifde. Be my… Dracula guhhhrrrooom.” His lips almost brushed Sehun’s temple before Sehun elbowed him in the chest and rang the doorbell.

“You’re gonna owe me big time for this.”

Kai drunkenly snickered, wheezing onto the side of Sehun’s face. When Jongin got the door, his face was flushed and his chest was heaving a little. “Kai.” He gasped and tore him away from Sehun. “He’s drunk?”

“Could there be a clearer answer to that?” retorted Sehun, rolling his eyes and hissed a breath when Kai grabbed his shirt, yanking him into the house before he collapsed against Jongin, pressing his face against Jongin’s shoulder. Ripping Kai’s hand off his shirt, Sehun groaned and retreated a step.

“No, wait. Sehun.” Jongin called as Kai hugged him, curling a hand around Jongin’s neck.

“Chu… smell like… soap.” Kai murmured and pressed his lips on the side of Jongin’s neck.

“Urgh! Why are you such a… God, Kai!” he jumped back and let Kai fall to his knees before Kai spewed, throwing up on the floor. Sehun blinked his wide eyes. What the actually hell? Was this the same Kai that everyone feared like heck? Was this the very guy who almost had Sehun’s spine snapped in two? Because right now, he looked like a 13-year-old praying to the porcelain god after his first experience with alcohol.

 _You really shouldn’t let me near you with your guard down again,_ Kai had advised. Did he even realize that he was in powerless and completely liable to Sehun’s mercy? Was he that confident and assertive that Sehun would not hurt him? Or was he simply too drunk to care about technicalities? Either way, Sehun had seen the weaker side of Kai. It was perhaps the only weak side he had. For all that he know, Jongin was not Kai’s weakness. He was his strength. And correlatively, Kai was Jongin’s strength. Precisely why Sehun needed to tear them apart.

But after what happened the other night, Sehun was not sure if he would still be able to even think about hurting Jongin. Even if it weren’t Jongin who came to his room, even if such a kiss never happened, Sehun comprehended that he was capable of such feelings. Someone was capable of triggering the feelings within him. And, perhaps, it was Jongin.

“He’s all yours, then.” Sehun spat and turned on his heel to leave.

“Sehun, please. Please.” Jongin pleaded and Sehun could hear the misery in his voice. “You… you didn’t even answer my calls. I almost… came by, but I know that it wouldn’t make things any easier for you. So, please. I’m begging you. Don’t avoid me.”

Drawing in a deep breath, Sehun turned and faced him with a pair of knitted brows. Kai was still on his fours before Jongin helped him to stand. “Get him settled first. I’ll wait.” He sighed and Jongin nodded at once, grappling an arm around Kai’s waist.

“Come on, Kai.” He grunted and wiped Kai’s mouth with his bare hand. Sehun’s stomach clenched. Amidst all those hatred and animosity, Jongin loved Kai. And although Kai would rather die than admit it, he did care for Jongin. It made Sehun queasy. He was also a brother once. But the brotherly love was long forgotten. Licking his lips and ruffling his own hair, Sehun stepped out of the house to perch on the veranda’s steps.

 

* * *

 

Kai heavily clung onto him as he dragged him up the stairs, struggling to keep him on his feet. Kai was not heavy, but he was impossible! Jongin made a guttural noise in the deepest pit of his stomach when Kai tugged at his hair on the nape as he staggered to the side. “Kai, I swear, I’ll fucking kill you if you choked on your own vomit and died!”

With the amount of effort used to move a mountain, Jongin succeeded in pulling Kai up to the second floor and that was when Kai giggled a little before pushing Jongin back. “Do I smell that bad?!” he screeched, but the silly grin remained on his stained lips.

“What? Why are you talking about that now? And yes, you do. Come here.” He grabbed Kai by his leather jacket and when Kai wriggled to free himself, Jongin let out an exasperated sigh before he crouched down. He lifted Kai off the ground and threw him over his shoulder.

“Let go… off me.” He mumbled as Jongin carried him to his bedroom. When they reached it, he tossed Kai onto the bed and knelt on either sides of Kai’s waist before sitting down on his stomach to hold him down. Kai hissed out a moan in protest when Jongin ripped his jacket off and pulled his t-shirt off. “I’m… horny… Jongin.” He giggled and Jongin froze to blink at his brother.

He quickly got off Kai’s stomach and bed with blood rushing to his cheeks. His heart skipped a beat nervously that instant as he raked Kai’s shirtless toned and tanned body. His abs expanded and deflated as he raggedly breathed with eyes closed. “Don’t sleep yet!” Jongin yelped and raced to the bathroom. Grabbing a towel, he drenched it in the sink and got hold of Kai’s water bottle from his desk before hurrying back to Kai. “Kai, get up. Drink.” He handed the half-filled water bottle to Kai but his brother was already snoring. “Shit.” He lifted Kai’s head and sat down before laying Kai’s head on his lap. Wiping and cleaning Kai’s mouth with the damp towel, he studied how long Kai’s eyelashes were. Well, he never realized he, himself had such long eyelashes. Everything about Kai had always been more prominent. Kai had envied Jongin for only reason—because he was chosen to be the First Alpha. But Jongin had every other reason to envy Kai. He unconsciously dragged the wet towel down Kai’s sternum, straight to his abs, watching how gently Kai’s chest heaved.

Snapping out of it, he carefully rested Kai’s head on the pillow and left the water bottle on the bedside table in case he needed it. He tucked Kai under the comforter before storming out of the bedroom.

As he hesitantly made his way down the stairs, he gnawed on his lower lip, wondering how he was going to settle things with Sehun. The sudden turn of events was unforeseen. Jongin did not even know what happened. It was all very unclear and he felt like he was left out of something. Sehun was hiding something from him. Well, Sehun was hiding many things. That was the whole point of getting to know him. But it seemed like Sehun was not ready to share anything about him. As much as Jongin was ready to wait, he did not think he actually would. He was also aware that something was off between Sehun and Kai. The thing was, he never even knew that Sehun was hanging out with Kai. And tonight he turned up with Kai, drunk from head to toe.

When he exited the house, he spotted Sehun on the steps and sucked in a breath before heading over to him. “Hey.”

Sehun looked up at him indifferently and glanced away. “Are your parents not home?”

Frowning, Jongin sank into the seat next to Sehun. “No. They went to visit a friend. What… happened with Kai?”

“I don’t know. I just bumped into him downtown and he was on the street, pissed as shit.” He shrugged. “Thought I’d come dump him off.”

A corner of Jongin’s lips quirked up, but the smirk quickly died when Sehun did not find his own jibe amusing. “Sehun.” he sighed and took Sehun’s hand into his own. “I’m sorry.”

Sehun stared at him for a moment and shook his head. “No. I should be the one apologizing for lashing out at you.”

“No, Sehun. I was… I just don’t know what’s happening anymore. I’m… really confused. So confused. With everything. Not just you. About our… relationship. About Kai. About… Adrian. It’s heat season. You can understand that all Werewolves are cuckoo nuts.” He groaned.

“Jongin, you don’t need to explain.”

“No. I want to.” Honestly, Jongin felt that if he kept bottling up things about him, Sehun will never be open about himself. “I feel like… our relationship hasn’t even started.”

“That’s because you’re too busy since we actually started going out.” Sehun scoffed, rolling his eyes.

“Sehun, listen.” He squeezed Sehun’s hand and scooted closer. “I am so…  _attracted_  to you. It’s… it’s like… I don’t even know how to explain. I just really, really like you. Yes, recently everything has been upside down for me. And then all out of the sudden, you… confessed to me yesterday. I want to know what that is all about. Why? When you… said it… my heart… swelled. And I swear, I meant it when I told you that I love… you. I do. And it’s not some teenage puppy love. I really want to be with you, Sehun. And I fucking don’t care if you’re a Vampire. Worse comes to worst, I’ll follow you wherever you go.”

Sehun’s eyes were unmoving. His lips were parted to gape at Jongin in genuine surprise. “Jongin.” His voice did not surpass a whisper and Jongin felt his hand tremble against his own. “You can’t… abandon your pack.”

“Sehun… I don’t know much about you. Actually, I don’t think I know anything about you. All that I do know is that… I have a family. You don’t. Why can’t I be that family for you?”

“Jongin, you’re not being serious.”

“I am. I’m dead serious. I felt like shit that I behaved that way to you right after you had professed your love for me. Sehun, no one has every… done something like that. I was a little taken aback. And for a very short moment, I was in complete bafflement. Sehun, I… Adrian… Adrian almost kissed me the other day. He was drunk. I promise you. Nothing happened. That was what had me so confused and moody for the past few weeks. I tried to get things sorted out with Adrian, but it didn’t work out as I expected.”

Sehun turned his face away, frowning and Jongin cupped his cheek, forcing him to meet his eyes. “Does he… like you?”

“No. No. He can’t… like me, Sehun. We barely know each other. I don’t feel anything like that towards him. Yes, he did… affect me. But now I’m over it. I’ve given enough thought about it, and I’m done sulking over it. I wanna focus on people who’re worth it.”

Sehun pursed his lips and Jongin could not read his expression. “You think I’m worth it?”

“Yes. Yes. You’re definitely worth it. So let me redo this again.” his thumb stroked Sehun’s cheekbone before his fingers slid into Sehun’s hair at the back of his head and he leaned in. “I love you, Sehun.” he breathed against his mouth and lightly kissed him, hoping that Sehun would kiss him back.

It felt neutral, much to Jongin’s dismay. They were kissing. Jongin should be wanting this. Instead, he found himself wondering if he would ever be able to imprint on Sehun.

But then Sehun’s hand snaked around his neck as he tilted his head to press his lips harder onto Jongin’s lips. “I love you, too.” Sehun whispered into his mouth and Jongin spontaneously slid his tongue past Sehun’s lips. Within the fraction of a second, their kiss was lit on fire and Sehun was tugging at Jongin’s shirt as if begging for more contact. Jongin’s hand was already lingering under Sehun’s thigh as Sehun unbuttoned the first button of Jongin’s shirt. Sehun’s lips were warming up against his own while his hands confusedly ghosted over his thigh. He wanted to near Sehun’s crotch. He wanted to just let Sehun fuck him senseless already. Maybe that would guarantee something between them.

And then Sehun broke the kiss, pressing their foreheads together as Jongin panted against his lips. “Not now.” Sehun muttered, stroking Jongin’s chest cleft through the unbuttoned shirt. “I want you to be sure, Jongin.”

“I am, Sehun.”

“No. No, you’re not.” He sighed and shot upright, straightening his shirt. “I can wait until you’re entirely sure.”

Jongin closed his eyes briefly, scrubbing his face with his palms. “Until the mating week.” He looked up at Sehun and acknowledged the perplexed look that Sehun gave. “I want you to mate with me, Sehun.”

 

* * *

 

He gave in. He completely gave in.

Sehun knew which line he was stepping over. The disappointment and guilt were murdering him from within. Guilt because he wanted to give him and Jongin a shot. Disappointment because the closer he got to Jongin, the more difficult it became for him to keep his focus on what he was sent here in the first place for.

“Hey.” Chanyeol flumped on the chair on the other side of the table Sehun had taken over in the cafeteria over the past couple of weeks. “Wow. Do you seriously have that many problems in life, dude? You look like you wallow in sorrows 24/7.”

“Make that 48/14.” Sehun sighed, pretending to be bothered with the straw of his untouched drink.

“God.” He slumped back on the chair and smirked at Sehun. “You’re really a reserved type, aren’t you?”

“I think it’s better that I don’t mingle with mortals.”

Chanyeol coughed out a laugh. “Well, at least we mortals knows how to throw a party. There’s one at downtown tonight.”

Sehun’s attention perked at once. “Downtown? Where?”

“Gulley?”

“Gulley?” Sehun grimaced.

“Yeah. Nearby Nightwalkers.”

Sehun nodded. “I see.”

“You should come.”

“No, thanks.”

“Don’t be a poo. Come on.”

“I’ll try.” He said just to end the conversation, but Chanyeol was relentless. He kept on going about the details of the party and Sehun barely gave it any attention.

His concentration shifted altogether when his eyes fell on Jongin and Kai who walked through the entrance of the cafeteria. Kai was hiding under a red hoodie and white t-shirt with a black pair of sunglasses hiding half of his face. Jongin was cladded in simple clothing as always—a black shirt and black jeans. He shot Sehun a smile for a very short second, signalling that he was aware of Sehun’s presence there. Sehun had to tune Chanyeol out to listen to what Jongin was saying to Kai when they stopped at the door.

“If you’re done, leave me alone, Kai.” Jongin muttered under his breath. Kai did not move as he faced Jongin with his hands stuck in the pockets of his tight light blue jeans. This was the first time Sehun had even seen Kai in bright colours.

“Are you seriously gonna do this, Jongin? I thought you understood that he’s not good for you.”

“Stop. Get away from here.”

Sehun could only guess that they might be talking about him.

“Yoohoo?” Chanyeol waved at his face, interrupting his focus for a moment. Sehun shook his head and concentrated again, keeping his head down. Kai probably knew that he was listening.

“What are you trying to achieve, Kai? If you think he’s tricking me, then so be it. That’s  _my_  problem. You can quit sniffing my ass as if you care. And as for your question earlier, I did ask him to be my mate. Does that satisfy you?” What was Jongin doing? Anyone could hear him here! Did he seriously mean it when he said that he would follow Sehun wherever he went?

Kai was silent as he did not reply and it was impossible to even read his expression due to the shades. Sehun felt his own guts twisting into knots. He doubted that Kai would say anything more since he did not have any evidence. It will look like a mere speculation and Jongin surely would not believe him. So, there was practically nothing that Sehun needed to fret about. And yet, his stomach was gurgling in anxiety.

“Huh.” Kai’s reply took both Jongin and Sehun aback.  _Huh?_ “Is that so?” his gaze darted to Sehun at once. Although Sehun did not want to surrender to Kai’s stare, he needed to play innocent in front of Jongin. So he dropped his head, pretending to be listening to Chanyeol’s rambling.

His feet went colder when he realized Kai was marching towards him, smug as always. Sehun still refused to look up at him even when Kai stopped by his table. Kai pulled a hand out of his jeans’ pocket and fisted a handful of Sehun’s hair at the back of his head before he mercilessly yanked it down, forcing Sehun’s face up, and neck arching back. Sehun was not even allowed to gasp when Kai smashed bowed down and smashed their lips together. Sehun went stock-still, entirely paralyzed with their lips kissing perpendicularly with Kai’s tongue forcefully shoved into his mouth. Maybe it was just Sehun, but it felt as if the world had gone still and quiet around him.

When Kai pulled back up and released Sehun’s hair, their lower lips were connected by a thin layer of saliva. He lowered to whisper into Sehun’s ear, “I don’t care if you wanna fuck my brother, but I marked you. I will fucking kill you if you let anyone else touch you again. From this minute, you’re mine.” There was absolutely nothing gentle about what he said. He straightened up and smirked at Jongin. Sehun did not even dare to look up at Jongin as he lifelessly sat there with his lips and body etched with Kai and his sharp words. “Game on, brother.” Sehun heard Kai say before he left the cafeteria.

* * *

 

There was absolutely nothing that Sehun could have done to erase the violent, forceful and aggressive beyond imagination kiss off his mouth. His lips were left throbbing for mere seconds. Throbbing in pain. Throbbing for…  _more_. He was not dumbfounded. He was precisely struck. Struck by the kiss—if it can even be called as kiss in the first place—and by the aggression. A sort shock and excitement wired his body like he was plugged into the mains. He felt like his brain was on fast-forward and there was no off switch. And yet, he could not even turn a hair or twitch a muscle to function. The adrenaline surging through his veins screamed silently in confusion. He felt giddy and the world spun around him for a moment. His body reacted the same way it had reacted the morning he woke up after that dreadful night. Only that the feelings were even more muddled now.

_“Do you know what I wanna do right now? Fuck you… so hard… until you scream… and bleed, yet still… beg for me… to keep going.”_

He could not have been serious. No. He was just drunk.

Powerful. Dominating. Arrogant. Violent. Rough. Aggressive. Belligerent. Unmerciful.

For the first part of his life, Sehun had experienced nothing but hardship and aggression. And then his life took the path filled with benevolence and gentleness. After so long, someone was challenging him in the way he feared the most. That’s right. He  _feared_  Kai now. For the first time, he was genuinely apprehensive of Kai. When their lips were crushed beneath one another, he was not sure what Kai had felt, but Sehun was cowering under him and his lips. Kai was ready to go to any extent and those were the extents that Sehun would never dare to cross. He had been hurt far too many times to fiddle with those extents. The hole in his heart and soul will always remain and there was nothing that he could do about it. He did not even know what had caused the hole. It was maybe a memory lapse since he had lived for too long, but he did not think that he would be able to forget something that had caused him that much of pain. He had never felt complete. And he did not want to feel complete anymore. He did not want to yearn to be complete.

As he wove his way out of the school, hurrying towards his car, he kept his head as low as he could. News travelled faster in smaller towns, especially in small town schools. All eyes were on him. Only that they were even more spiteful. The girls could have burnt him with the death glares as he slid past them. It was as if Sehun had stolen their Prince Charming or something. Kai was pulling a trick again. That was for sure. He wanted Jongin to witness it and hear what he had whispered into Sehun’s ear. Why? Sehun was not entirely certain. It could be for the fact to divert Jongin’s attention. Or he wanted to play with Sehun’s head again. Sehun really could not place it right. What could have been the intention? Was he trying to irk Jongin? Because it was a known fact that Kai did not swing that way—he was not gay. And kissing Sehun in front of half of the school manifested his mark on Sehun. But why? Nothing made sense. For now, Sehun could only deduce one thing. Kai deliberately pulled the show for Jongin. And to a certain degree, it worked because Jongin just left the cafeteria without facing Sehun even for a second. And Sehun was too dumbstruck to notice Jongin’s reaction—if there were any.

“So, what? He’s a two timing whore?”

Sehun cringed within and bit the inside of his cheek when he heard the silent remark from the corner of the parking lot.

“I don’t even know. Who knew Kai would…” she trailed off when Sehun looked in their direction. He quickly averted his gaze when he reached his car and grimaced at the scent first before he spotted Jongin leaning against his car with his hands stuck in his jean’s pockets, eyes bloodshot and enraged as a losing soldier in a battle.

Sehun’s throat felt dry and he stopped a few feet before Jongin, guts knotting. “Jongin.”

“He marked you?” Jongin spat, jaw locked and nostrils flaring. He even pulled his hands out of the pockets and clenched them into fists. “When did that happen, huh?”

“What? I don’t even know what he was talking about, Jongin.”

“Really? ‘Cause in the morning, he actually asked me to stay away from you because he think that you’re tricking me or something. Why would he think that, huh? And don’t tell me because he hates you. Quite a huge fraction of the school saw just about how much he  _hates_  you.” He scoffed scornfully and for once in a very long time, Sehun felt extremely vulnerable.

He glanced around him and at the eyes that were on them. At least they were standing in the corner, so no one could hear them. Except the wolves maybe, but there weren’t any. “Let’s go someplace else first, Jongin.”

“No.” he stopped himself to draw in a long breath as he turned his face away, scowling. When he faced Sehun again, he was looked even more crossed. “Am I the only one who’s completely lost here? How come he’s sure that you’re tricking me? Then why would he kiss you? What happened between you that he confidently claims you right in front of me and you did not contradict?!”

Sehun heaved a sigh. “Why don’t you ask him?”

Jongin blinked in shock. “Is that all that you’re gonna tell me, Sehun?”

“Jongin, I’m just as lost as you are, okay? If anything, you should know that he will do absolutely  _anything_ to separate us. Don’t you see that he did it on purpose? For you to see it?”

“What’s the purpose, then?”

“Exactly  _this_. What we’re doing right now. That’s what he wants. He doesn’t like me that way. Shit, he doesn’t like me at all!”

“I know that. I know that he’s not… gay. So it doesn’t add up. Which is why I’m asking you, what happened between you two that he’s saying that he had marked you? I don’t think even  _he_  would say something like that without meaning. Especially with the wolves around. You seriously think he would do that all for a joke when you’re a… Vampire? Do you even know what’s at stake here?”

“Jesus fucking Christ. I don’t think I wanna do this right now, Jongin.” He shoved Jongin aside and ripped the car’s door open. Jongin harshly grabbed his arm and turned him around to face him.

“What are you hiding from me, Sehun?” he asked, frowning. This was it. Sehun could not afford to lose Jongin’s alliance because of this. Once Jongin started to doubt him, Sehun did not think that he will succeed in any of his plans. Plans, which were being quite forgotten whenever he was with Jongin.

“Get in the car.”

This time, Jongin did not oppose. As soon as they were inside, Sehun pulled the car away from the school grounds before he drove them to forest side. “Sehun, tell me.”

“If you’d trust me.” Sehun sighed, turning the engine off. Jongin did not seem as furious anymore. Instead, he looked concerned and somewhat scared of what he might hear.

“That’s all what I’ve been doing from the moment I’ve met you, Sehun.”

Sehun felt a pang sent straight to his heart. “Okay. I know that I should have told you about this earlier but things got complicated between us. Kai had been aiming for me for so long.”

Jongin nodded his head. “He picks on you.”

“No, it’s more than that, Jongin.” He gulped. “He thinks that I’m bad. I’m bad for you.” The only advantage Sehun had here was the fact that Kai had no proof of his accusation. Other than that, Kai had it all figured out pretty well. “We… had a fight the other day.” He continued. “He bit me while he was in transition. So…”

“He poisoned you.” Jongin said breathlessly as he leaned back on the seat. “But you’re… okay.”

“He cured me, too.”

This was apparently a surprise to Jongin because he gaped at Sehun. “He what?”

“He came to my house that night and he cured me. With his blood. I thought it was you.” He admitted, a little embarrassed.

“Why would he bite you and then cure you?”

“Precisely. Who knows what he’s playing at, Jongin?”

“He didn’t tell me.” He was talking to himself now, hands balling into fists on his lap.

Sehun should at least use this opportunity in his favour. “I didn’t want to tell you because I don’t want you to fight him about this, Jongin.”

“Like fuck I won’t.”

 

* * *

 

Every word stung only fuelling the fire that burned inside of him. Every violated phrase that Sehun had said was like gasoline to it, his fists were clenched as he climbed down his truck and his jaw rooted. He was ready explode with rage. His red-rimmed eyes were brewing furious tears. He was too confused and angry to even think straight. He was a Werewolf after all and even as a common lycan, he was not used to handling rage all too well. And right now, he just wanted to break his brother’s jaw.

As he stomped past the loam porch, he spotted Kyungsoo emerging out of the trees and Jongin tightened his fists. “Where is he?!” he barked at Kyungsoo who responded with a baffled look.

“Who? Kai?”

“Yes, that fucking bastard.” Jongin marched up to Kyungsoo but didn’t stop when Kyungsoo hesitantly jerked his thumb over his own shoulder.

“Jongin, is everything okay?” he called after Jongin who slowly broke into a jog through the trees. He should have broken Kai’s face the minute he kissed Sehun so audaciously right in front of him. But he wondered if Sehun had something to do with it all, and wanted to hear Sehun’s side of the story. But now that he understood Kai’s intentions and incentives, he was not going to forgive him. He had bitten Sehun and had cured him. Jongin was sure that it was why Kai was looking for him the other night. But why he did not tell Jongin after he had cured Sehun? Because he knew that there was no way in hell Jongin would forgive him for not only biting him, but curing him as well. That was his mark. He marked Sehun on purpose. No matter how Jongin thought about it, he could only see it as Kai doing it to irritate him.

He came to a stop near the flattened ground when Kai came into sight, sweating from head to toe, shirtless and showcasing the prominent swirls of tattoos on his waistlines. “Oh.” He said, smirking, a little breathless. “Did you need something, baby brother?”

Jongin’s chest heaved as he panted. “Why? Can’t stand it that I’m happy? You’re so jealous that you have to sabotage my happiness?! I’ve never been but happy every single time  _you_  were happy! You don’t like Sehun. You marked him because I like him! You want him gone because I want him to stay! And fuck, you bit him?! You fucking know sometimes Vampires get sired from Werewolves’ blood!”

In that frozen second their eyes stared at one another ferociously. Kai’s face was unreadable, no fear, no invitational smirk. And then he said, “No, Jongin. I marked him because I want him.”

His heart skipped a beat in extreme disappointment. “What?”

“You heard me the first time.” He took a step closer. “I. Want. Him.”

“Y-you’re not even making sense! Why would you want him?”

“Because  _you_  want him.” Kai shrugged. “I’ve tried so many ways to keep you away from him. I told you that he’s not what he seems. I tried to convince you that he has ulterior motives. And I even tried to hook you up with Adrian because for fuck’s sake, I want you to lose something once!”

Jongin retreated a step. “You don’t mean it…”

“I sure as hell do. So, I’m sorry to inform you, Jongin, you’ve got competition now. And I don’t think I’ll be backing down any time soon. You said that you’re gonna mate with him?” he began to snicker. “Did you even imprint on him?”

Jongin blinked vacantly. He had no breath in his lungs anymore. He couldn’t believe his ears and he was not sure if he should believe any of this. Surely Kai cannot be that cruel. “Did  _you_?”

“Nope. But it’ll be fun when Sehun chooses me over you, won’t it?” he smirked.

“He’s never gonna choose you. You’re doing this just to see me lose?! Have you even thought about  _his_  feelings?!”

“I’m hundred per cent sure he had figured me out just as much as I have him. You, on the other hand, Jongin, are clueless as ever. You know what you are? A pathetic school boy with the title of an Alpha but has no qualities whatsoever. Do you know why the pack chose you to be their leader? Because you’re one fucking weak piece of crap that can easily be manipulated. They didn’t want me as their Alpha because they don’t need someone who rules above them.”

All the rage and anger faded from Jongin’s chest, replaced by an untamed amount of dolour and despair. “Kai…”

“Yeah, people always choose you. But that’s not because you’re so damn good. That’s because you’re so damn gullible. And I can assure you, someone like Sehun would never choose a guy like you.”

“He-he… he loves me.” He had to swallow before speaking again. “He has nothing to achieve from me.”

“Really?”

Jongin shook his head, wiping his jaw. His heart was hammering against his chest. “What would happen when the others find out about this? That you’re going after a Vampire?”

“Fun fact—they  _fear_  me. They, however, don’t care shit about you. And without me by your side, Jongin, you’ll be even more helpless.” He crossed the distance between them slowly.

“Y-you’re… not even gay. Sehun doesn’t buy anything that you said or did.”

“Something tells me that I can make him buy it sooner than you think.” His tone was mocking and his smirk stirred blood in Jongin’s ears.

Jongin gulped, taking a step back as he swallowed the sob that began to rise in his throat. He had no idea that Kai despised him to this extent. “You hate Vampires.” His voice broke as he retreated another foot and that was when Kai caught his wrist. Jongin fiercely swatted his hand off his wrist and attempted to growl at him.

“I can make an exception for this one.”

“No… you can’t… I… love Sehun!” he lunged his fist for Kai’s smirking face and it struck Kai’s cheek, sending him staggering back. Kai relentlessly lurched forward and aimed a jab for Jongin’s face but the younger easily dodged it and caught Kai’s arm before twisting it around, at Kai’s back. Kai let out a vicious growl and elbowed Jongin in the face. Releasing his brother, Jongin dived back with blood oozing out of his nose. The metallic and hot liquid trickled down his lips, but he did not bother to wipe it as he faced Kai whose eyes were already turning golden. Jongin felt his own bones and nerves tensing angrily. “What the fuck is your problem, Kai?!”

“You think I have a problem?! What is  _your_ problem, Jongin? Is it the fact that you don’t want  _me_ to be near Sehun or you don’t want me with  _anyone_ , huh?”

Jongin went completely still as he panted, eyes widening in disbelief. “Wh… what?”

Kai straightened up and rubbed a side of his jaw. “Did you… imprint… on me? Isn’t… Sehun just a distraction? In the meantime, to make sure that no one ever mates and knots with you? Sehun can’t knot. As far as I know, we’re not allowed to mate with humans. You think I’m stupid? You can’t knot inside someone you’ve not imprinted on. So the whole ‘I’m gonna mate with Sehun thing’ was just something to get my attention, wasn’t it? You rejected Adrian not because of Sehun, but because of me.” he asked calmly and very slowly as if spelling the words out.

“You’ve gone… barking mad.” Jongin exhaled and clasped a hand over his bleeding nose as he turned around to walk the hell away from there. And then Kai grabbed his arm.

“Jongin—”

He shoved Kai’s hand off his arm before he burst into a sprint towards the house.

 

 * * *

 

Sehun ended the call when Jongin did not answer it for the nth time. He glanced over at the bright neon blue sign that said ‘Gulley’. He had no time to waste anymore. Kai had a plan. He was sure. If he wanted to be one step ahead of Kai, he would need some support around here. And this Viw guy seemed pretty influential. Unbuttoning his coat, Sehun was about to enter the Nightwalkers before he caught the whiff of Jongin’s scent and his arm was tugged. When he turned with a start, he recognized the dull red hair and grimaced hard at Kai who was sheepishly grinning at him. He was dressed in—surprisingly—navy blue shirt, sleeves rolled to his elbows, hooking arms with Sehun. “What… god!” Sehun pulled his arm free. “What do you want?”

“What do you think?” Kai smiled. “It starts with an S and ends with a C.”

Sehun blinked. “Shouldn’t it be S and K?”

“Ah, see! We’re thinking exactly the same!”

Sehun felt his cheeks burning, but he remained composed. “Leave me alone.”

“Nope. Anything but that.”

“What were you trying to do today, huh?”

“I meant every word that I said. Cross my heart.” He made a cross on his chest with a fake pout on his lips. “I will kill you if you let anyone else touch you.”

Sehun rolled his eyes. “We’ll see about that.” He started past Kai but was stopped when Kai blocked his path. “Kai, whatever that you’re doing isn’t funny.” His lips were already throbbing again and he was trying his level best to not to let his gaze wander to Kai’s plush lips.

“There’s a party at Gulley’s.”

“The last time I went to a party with you—”

“I sucked you up and you loved it.”

“Wh… Fuck you. Go away.” He tried to get past Kai who was blocking the way to the entrance, but was once again stopped by Kai’s grip on his hand.

“Why?”

“What why?” he asked, annoyed.

“Why is it okay with you when I kissed you while you thought I was Jongin and why is it not okay when I kissed you as myself?”

Sehun paused to look into Kai’s sudden piercing eyes. “So… you did...” he trailed off.

“Yeah, I did.”

“What are you playing at, Kai?”

The corner of Kai’s lips quirked up and he raised his hand to Sehun’s forehead before giving it a hard flick which had Sehun swooned for a second. He hissed in pain, shoving Kai back. “I marked you, Sehun. And you’re not gonna escape from me, you get it?” he said, smirking.

For once, Sehun found Kai charming. In his own scary way. “Did you come here just to say that?!”

“Yep. And to get some plasters for my brother.” He shrugged. “So… if I kiss you right now, you’re gonna go all limp and weak again, aren’t you?”

“What?”

* * *

 

It felt like death by a thousand papercuts. The dejection flowed through his veins and deadened his mind. It was a poison to his spirit, dulling his killing off his other emotions until it was the only one that remained tonight. It was as if a black mist had settled upon him and refused to shift. The sadness was his albatross. It lay like dirty snow over every other emotion, greying his spirit, tainting all that could bring him joy and relief. Pressing his face into his palms, Jongin slouched forward with elbows on his knees as he sat flumped on the edge of his bed. Everything Kai and he shared prior to the moment Jongin was chosen to be the First Alpha surged into his mind and was consumed by the desire to wind back time and slow it down so he could savour those precious moments, and chastised himself for squandering them. His mind had always been on the next deal, the big one, the one that would make them comfortable for life. He knew he wasn’t to blame for the chosen Alpha that shoved his brother away, but the sadness had settled over his skin anyway and his spring was a long way off.

They had shared the smallest intimate space there was in this world. Their mother’s womb. Although they—unlike other monozygotic twins—did not share many things, including their supernatural forms, they loved each other. Quite a lot. Jongin had not imagined that one day, things would turn this nasty between them. Nothing had changed for Jongin except that he had learnt to ignore Kai and his menacing behaviours because that seemed easier than to brood over his brother’s attitude every single minute. He had gotten tired of Kai to say the least. But when you share so much time with someone, so many intimate moments, you tend to get emotionally attached with them. Jongin had no idea where Kai had picked up the whole imprint accusation, but it hurt. It was not true. Even the thought of imprinting on his own brother horrified Jongin. There was a point in life where Jongin wondered what would happen if he did in fact imprint on Kai because it did not seem impossible.

He used to like Kai. In ways that were so unimaginably wrong. He gotten over it a long time ago. But now that Kai brought it all up again, Jongin could not help but wonder if what Kai had said was true. Was he mad that Sehun was being picked on by Kai, or was it because Kai went for Sehun but ignored him? Jongin brought his head up and shook it so hard. It was nothing but a childish fantasy. Everything Kai did and everything he was had been a mesmerisation for Jongin. He was crude, but had never been anything but a good friend and brother to Jongin before everything caved in. He was rough. But he was also a sane guy who would never fall for his own twin brother. Jongin, on the other hand, was too pathetic to button down his feelings. Perhaps Kai was right. Perhaps he was weak and the only reason these people chose him as their Alpha was because he was lenient enough for them to manipulate them. But why was Jongin that way? Because of Kai. They balanced one another. Kai had always been there for him that Jongin never learned to be cruel enough to face the world.

He faced the rain outside the window while his nose throbbed in pain. The blood was dry and cracking above his lip. 

If Kai hated him so much, Jongin never would have bothered to stay here. Perhaps he could run off the way Adrian had. He stayed because this was where home was. This was where Kai was. He had gotten over Kai. He seriously did not need Kai to bring this up again. The whole time, Kai was trying to get Jongin to spill the beans. Jongin was not sure if Kai meant everything that he had said. But there was one thing that was certain. He succeeded in hurting Jongin.

He rose to his feet and advanced for the window when he heard Kai’s SUV pull up on the driveway. Kai raced for the shelter of the veranda with a hand over his head to protect himself from the rain. Jongin turned and leaned his back on the window, heaving in a long breath. Things had gotten way too complicated to be repaired. He wanted to move on. He wanted to move on with Sehun because he genuinely liked him despite their differences. He had to focus on something that will spare him all these heartaches. And Sehun, of all people, did not seem interested in him as much as Jongin would have liked him to be. He claimed that he loved Jongin, but there was nothing progressing between them. And after today, Jongin was not sure what the truth was and what he could believe anymore.

He crossed his arms over his chest when Kai walked before the room with his blue shirt darkened by patches of rain on the shoulders. He stopped by the door and let out a loud sigh before entering the room.

“Leave me alone, Kai.” Jongin muttered under his breath, dropping heavily to sit on the bed.

“Your nose looks… charming.” He took his seat next to Jongin on the bed. “Let me see.” He raised his hand to Jongin’s face before Jongin slapped it off. “Oh, come on. Don’t be a pussy.”

“Yeah. Of course you’d make fun of me. Because I let guys fuck me, right? That makes me a pussy, of course.”

A frown crossed Kai’s brows. He looked exhausted, not physically but mentally and Jongin wondered what had ruffled Kai’s feathers. “I want to talk to you.”

“That doesn’t work with you, Kai. Talking never works with you, does it?”

“You punched me first, remember? My jaw hurts, too. Come here, let me see.” He touched Jongin’s cheek and Jongin jolted up to his feet.

“What do you want? Do I not look enough pathetic to you already?”

Kai’s jaw tightened and he licked his lips, gripping onto the edge of the bed. “Fine. I told you all those stuffs because I… because I was mad.”

Jongin raised his brow. “So, you don’t… want Sehun?”

“Oh, that part was true. I want Sehun. The reason I provoked you earlier was because I wanted you to speak the truth for once.”

“For once? What the fuck are you even talking about, Kai?” Jongin was already panting and although he asked the question, he was not hoping for an answer.

“Then tell me. I’m not ignorant, Jongin. Last night, earlier this morning, why were and are you horny every single time I’m around you?” his tone was mocking but his expression remained straight.

“You’re out of your mind, Kai. This is not even funny.”

“No, it sure as hell is not. You think I won’t know when a Werewolf is in heat whenever he’s around me? Or do you think I didn’t hear just about how many times you used to shout my name in the bathroom late at nights when you were 15, 16?”

Jongin felt the heat rush to his cheeks as his stomach churned in anxiety. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Kai.” His voice was as silent as a whisper.

“I need to know. And I’m asking you to be honest with me, Jongin. As much as I hate you, I’d want to know if you had imprinted on me.”

“No! What the fuck?! Stop your bullshit, Kai!”

Kai rose to his full height. “Now let’s be clear. If you did not imprint on me, what do I mean to you?”

“Y-you… you mean nothing to me, Kai.” He withdrew but Kai fisted his shirt and hauled him closer.

“Then why won’t you accept Adrian?!”

“What?” he began to gasp. “Kai, why would I even  _accept_  Adrian?! What are you talking about?!”

“Are you blind or do you deliberately choose to be ignorant? He’s imprinted on you, Jongin. He took you as his mate!”

“No… No. He didn’t…”

“Yes, he  _did_. He told me, Jongin. He came back for you. And even he knows that you’re using Sehun as a distraction and he could sense of your fucking attraction towards me, your damned twin brother!”

Jongin stood breathlessly for a moment. “That’s… not possible. His mate was Lena.”

“Did he ever say that? And even now, you’re refusing to talk about how you feel towards me.”

“Why would I even believe you, Kai? You’re a completely vile person. You, yourself said that in order to break me and Sehun apart, you tried to hook me up with Adrian.”

“Yeah. Part of the reason is for your own sake. I want to know what you’re doing, Jongin.” His hands came up to Jongin’s face and he clasped the sides, gazing into Jongin’s quivering eyes. “What do you want?” his voice was low and his breath grazed Jongin’s lips. “I don’t want you near Sehun. That is the truth. But… I can’t… be with you either.”

“So you think Adrian is the best solution to get rid of me?”

“You’re my brother, Jongin.”

Jongin shuddered when the thunder struck, roaring and shaking the atmosphere and he almost leaned into Kai’s chest. “You think I’m happy, Kai?” he murmured, casting his eyes low. “I want to be with Sehun. And… now you’re telling me that Adrian had imprinted on me? Why haven’t you told me this earlier?”

“It was not my business. But now, you need to set your mind straight, Jongin. Forget about me.” He dropped his hands from Jongin’s face and took a couple of steps back. “I’m glad to know that you didn’t imprint on me and there is absolutely no way you’re gonna imprint on Sehun.”

“How would you know that?”

“Because you haven’t already. If you’re convinced that you have no feelings for me, then why haven’t you imprinted on Sehun? You said that you wanna mate with him, but you know that he will never complete you. Adrian on the other hand—”

“Stop, Kai. I don’t need you to police my relationship. Yes, I did fancy you. A long time ago. Fine, give me shit for that because no brother would ever be so fucked up to want to…” he stopped himself before he could run his words. “I don’t want you to talk about me or my relationship with Sehun after this. And about Adrian, don’t interfere with it. Mind your own business.” He shoved Kai away by his shoulder and strutted past him with his fists clenched.

“So, I guess we’re back to square one if you still insist on being with Sehun.”

“Fine with me. I’d like to see you lose as well, Kai.”

“Where are you going?”

“To settle things with Adrian.”

* * *

 

Jongin exited his truck when Adrian’s SUV pulled over at the porch, with his hands tremoring in consternation and shuddered with the raindrops once again bulleted the top of his head and shoulders. Rain and tears mingled on his face, salty tracks blending into the fresh night sky-fallen trickles. Only the pinkness of Jongin’s eyes gave any clue to his anxiety and heartache and he did not want Adrian to look closely enough to tell. There was a heaviness to his woollen coat as he walked over to Adrian’s SUV. Adrian tossed him a glance, soaking in the rain himself as he hastily carried Lenz out of the car. “What are you doing here?” he asked Jongin, hurrying to the doorstep with Lenz’s head shielded with his hand, the baby pressed against his shoulder and chest to protect him from the coldness of the rain. Jongin was immune to the rain by now as he quietly followed behind Adrian. Once they were under the protection of the veranda’s roof, Adrian let Lenz lift his head up and turn it to face Jongin with a wide, toothy grin.

“Nyu nyoo eh ehe!” Lenz cooed, stretching his arms toward Jongin. For a moment, Jongin allowed himself to be comforted by Lenz’s delicate smile and violent urge for Jongin’s warmth. But when Jongin held his hands out to accept Lenz, Adrian drew his son away. That instant, Jongin stood there, blankly blinking in an inappropriate amount of confusion. He was dumbstruck by the way Adrian refused to hand the baby over.

“What is it, Jongin? Did you need something?” Adrian’s question was asked in an indifferent tone and there was no expression in his rain-drenched face. Jongin silently stared at Adrian with beads of rainwater dribbling down his temples and cheeks. His shirt under his coat stuck to him like a second skin and so was Adrian’s white shirt which was tucked in his faded blue jeans with his gun strapped on a hip. Adrian’s dark hair was dripping against his forehead, curtaining half of his forehead and his wet shirt was glued to his tanned abs and chest muscles. “Jongin.”

Jongin looked up at him with a start when Adrian had snapped. Lenz turned again, reaching out for Jongin only to be denied by his father again as Adrian yanked the baby’s extended arm down. “What are you… doing?” Jongin demanded in a low voice, watching Lenz aggressively struggling to free himself of his father’s grip.

“If you’re not here because of an emergency, Jongin, I have to take him inside.” Adrian told him without any exaggeration before he pulled the keys out and unlocked the door. As he stepped in, Lenz peered over his father’s shoulder and held his arm out, wriggling in Adrian’s arms, wanting to go to Jongin. He pointed a finger at Jongin and faced Adrian. But when his father did not budge as he pulled the hoodie down from Lenz’s head, the baby coughed twice before breaking into an adamant cry.

“Adrian…” Jongin let out, disappointedly as he stood at the doorstep. His eyes darted to the handful of moving boxes that were scattered in the corners of the living room and his jaw fell a little before he entered the house and closed the door behind him. Lenz’s wailing only hit the roof when Adrian did not let him down to crawl. “Adrian, give him to me.”

Adrian did not reply as he hurried to the baby’s room and Jongin clenched his eyes along with his jaw and hands. Heaving a long sigh, he started for the baby’s room. He cannot leave without settling this with Adrian first.

When he peered into the room, Adrian was scowling as he undressed Lenz who was crying even louder now. “Adrian, what are you doing? He’s crying.”

“I know that he’s crying, Jongin!”

Jongin pursed his lips at once when Adrian burst out shouting and everything stopped around them for a while except Lenz’s crying. Adrian was glaring at him now before he shook his head, rubbing his temples and continued to get rid of the baby’s diaper. “Let me—”

“No.” Adrian’s eyes darted over to him with intense irritation. “I need you to leave if you’re here to see Lenz.”

“I’m not. But why can’t I if I am?”

“Because I say so. I’m his father. Not you.” He stomped over to the drawers and furiously grabbed the wet wipes.

“Adrian…” Jongin came here with fire in his chest. But right now, he was just…  _scared._  “He’s crying, Adrian. You’re not… doing anything.” His voice was a whisper when he spoke.

“Yeah. Maybe I’m just too tired of the life that I didn’t ask for.”

That was when Jongin felt his heart drop straight to his stomach with a merciless thud. “Y-you don’t… mean that.”

Adrian kept mum.

“Adrian, were you really being serious about getting transferred? Are you moving again?”

“That’s none of your business, is it not, Jongin?”

“Wha… How is it not my business? Are you moving?”

“Leave, Jongin.” He spat, this time, annoyed as he picked Lenz up again and took him into the bathroom. Jongin stood there motionlessly for a stretch before he retreated from the baby’s room and headed for the living room. Ignoring the fact that he was completely soaked, he flumped to sit on the couch and buried his head in his hands. Lenz’s cries quieted down after a moment and Jongin did not bother to bring his head up for more than half an hour. But when he did, he heard nothing but the sound of shower in a distant. He rose to his feet and peeled his damp coat off. Dropping it lazily to the floor, he wove his way back to Lenz’s room and found the baby sitting in the cot, all ready for bed and in his elephant pyjamas, playing with his stuffed animals. He looked over at Jongin at once and dropped his gaze back to play with his toys. Jongin let out a shaky breath and leaned over the cot to stroke the baby’s head. Lenz dropped his toy to cling onto Jongin’s wrist and smiled up at him. Smiling back, Jongin lifted him a little—careful not to get him wet again—and laid the baby down to lie on the mattress. He loved Lenz. For a guy who never coveted for a child, Jongin was too attached to Lenz. Not because he was Lena’s child, but because he was the only one who loved Jongin unconditionally, without judging him even once.

Jongin felt tired. Perhaps Adrian was not the only one who was tired with the life he did not want, but the life he  _chose_. Jongin stuffed the pacifier into Lenz’s mouth before storming out of the room. He was, indeed, too tired. Too tired of fighting Kai. Too tired of convincing himself that he loved Sehun and that Sehun loved him back. Too tired of fooling himself that everyone around him was sincere. For once, he wanted to be reckless like Kai and live life to the fullest even if it were just for one night.

As he walked into Adrian’s bedroom, he stopped before the closed bathroom’s door with his heart pounding against his ribs and let the sound of the shower soothe him for a minute.  _Exhausted._ He thought.  _I’m exhausted._ He unbuttoned his shirt and shedding it to the floor, he stepped out of his shoes, pants and boxers before entering the bathroom.

The bathroom was just as the house. It screamed luxury and opulence. It was divided into four sections; bath, shower, toilet and sink counters. All bordered by glass doors and walls. Jongin tiredly glanced over at the shower cubicle and stared at Adrian’s blurred naked figure behind the hazy and steam-covered glass.

Not for the first time, Jongin was afraid to fall. Fall for that man. Fall for anyone who would hurt him again. If Adrian  _had_ imprinted on him, if Jongin did  _not_  want him, he should not even be considering  _this._  But here he was, wanting something. Wanting someone to hold him. Someone who would not even think of hurting him. Someone that trusted him.

Someone that Jongin had been hurting all this while.

He calmed his racing heart and turned all of his emotions down as he pushed the cubicle’s glass door open and Adrian turned, frozen, but he did not look shocked when Jongin entered the shower with him. In contrast to the cold rain, the shower was warm as the water rivulets trickled down his back and chest wetting his hair and face in the process. They stood there in silence, eyes locked and breath quickening. Jongin’s eyes travelled down Adrian’s sculpted chest and abs, but his stopped himself right there, although he could clearly see that even Adrian’s limp cock was big enough to knock the prostate out of its place. He was too thick and unimaginably too long, which correlated well to his well-built body. He glanced back up to check if Adrian were looking at him. He wasn’t. Adrian’s eyes were on Jongin’s face the entire time as the four showerheads drenched them from the top. With so much hesitation of being rejected, Jongin took a careful step closer and wrapped his hand around Adrian’s neck. It can just be a one night thing. Jongin needed to let off some steam and he was sure Adrian wouldn’t mind.

In simpler words, he was about to use Adrian.

Jongin calmly leaned in, pressing his other hand to Adrian’s hard abs but stopped when Adrian clutched his wrists, pulling Jongin’s hands away from his neck and abdomen. He did not bother to utter a word as he stepped out of the shower and grabbed the towel before he exited the bathroom with the towel wrapped around his waist, leaving Jongin alone in the shower. Jongin palmed his face before running his hands through his hair and wiped his jaw, choking back on a sob. What’s he doing? He’s fucking cheating on Sehun, that’s what he’s doing.

 

* * *

 

Sehun was aware of the rain that had started to pour outside but even thunders were not loud enough to block the sound of Kai’s voice when he asked Sehun if he would go weak if he kissed him again. It was precisely like Kai to leave Sehun just like that without a proper explanation right after he was done confusing Sehun all over again.

“Donna.” Sehun called when he spotted her attending a man at the bar counter and her face lit up at once.

“Well, now you’re boring me.” She spat at the bearded man before she jumped to her feet and wove her way to Sehun in lithe movements, like a sly cat. “Hey, porcelain.” She purred just like one, throwing her skinny arms around Sehun’s shoulders. “You like keeping your promises, don’t you? And you remember my name.”

Sehun smirked, scanning her from her eyes to red, very kissable lips. “I don’t forget prizes and treasures.” He kept his voice relatively low.

Her red lips stretched into a wicked smile and she pulled her arms off his shoulders. “I’m the whore here, boy. Not you. Here for Viw, or  _me_?”

Sehun licked his lips. “All good things come in pairs. I might take my chances at the both of you tonight.”

Donna’s smile widened. “You impress me so much, porcelain. Wish there were more like you in this wretched town. Anyway…” she sighed, dragging a finger down Sehun’s chest. “He’s up there.”

Sehun nodded and hurried towards the stairway. The guard stopped him at the door, examining Sehun from top to toe. “I’m here to meet Viw.”

The guard nodded as if he knew something and allowed Sehun into the room. For an instant, Sehun froze at the hallway to wince at the amount of blood red drapes that ornamented the room and grimaced when he found a couple of men on the couch, snogging scantily dressed women. Behind them stood the black-shirted guards, all watching Sehun eerily. It was not too long before the two men were draining the blood out of the women’s necks and much to Sehun’s surprise, the women stayed silent with nothing more than whimpers. Huh. So Viw was indeed an influential man here.

“Viw?” Sehun called and one of the two men looked up, breaking his kiss with the blonde woman.

“Ah. So you’re the new fish in town. Come sit.” The man waved at the couch before him and Sehun without hesitance, took his seat and crossed his arms over his chest, sneering at the guards that were glowering at him. “What’s your business here, boy?”

Viw was huge, in the sense that he was muscular and bulky, with quite attractive facial features. His black hair shone under the bright lights of the room and his dress code was very eccentric. He looked like he had jumped out the Matrix Trilogy. “I need to speak with you in private.”

“This  _is_ private.” He said nonchalantly. “No one here would dare to mind my business. They would not even listen. So go ahead. But before that, what are you doing here? In my town?”

“Oh. Am I misinformed? ‘Cause I’m pretty sure that this is not  _your_ town.”

The guards hissed, shifting in their positions. Sehun smirked when Viw raised his hand to stop them.

“Huh. They don’t listen?” he scoffed. “Viw, I’m not here to argue. In fact, I’m here for a completely different thing.”

“Which is?”

“I heard that you’re… quite a predominant figure in this town. To the Vampires, you are… they’re superlative. Am I to be wronged?”

“Hm.” He droned, shrugging a little. “So Kai was right. You want something from me.” Viw muttered, clasping his hands together as he leaned forward, placing his elbows on his thighs and Sehun’s brows furrowed.

“Kai?”

“Yeah. Kim Kai came in earlier to warn me about you. He threatened me that if I do anything behind him or his brother with you, he’d deal with me personally.” He said without a disturbance in his nonchalant expression.

“What?!” Sehun felt like he had received a blow to his face. That. Fucking. Bastard. “He was here?”

Viw chuckled. “Yeah, he was. Listen, boy. Whatever that you’ve got to ask or say, do it elsewhere. We don’t wanna be in bad books of the big dogs.”

Sehun shook his head, wiping his face with his bare hand. “You’ve got to be kidding me. There’s like almost a hundred of us in this town and you’re afraid of one fucking Werewolf?!”

Viw’s jaw tightened. “I’m not sure how ignorant you are, but Kai is a Berserker. Which means, he could rip the heads of 50 Vampires in the matter of two minutes.”

Sehun was still for a moment. “What?”

“Why do you think they’re so rare? And they transform once in a blue moon.” Viw snorted and snickered. “Right now, I’d rather hold peace with Kai, especially with all the killings, than have any sort of deal with you. By what you said earlier, I’m guessing you’re here to manipulate me to go against the wolves? Why? Well, why exactly would you need that if you don’t need support? Why would you need support if you didn’t do something bad?” his expression turned grave now. “There… had been… a lot of murders… since you’ve moved here, is that not right?”

Sehun remained calm as he stared at Viw. “You’re gonna pin it on me? Because I don’t think I’m that sloppy to leave traces.”

“Oh, don’t get me wrong, boy. You’re one of mine. But it was Kai’s theory and I can’t help but wonder… what’s there to contradict it with?”

“So, Kai told you all these stuffs?”

“He had a good point. It is sort of weird that you show up here out of nowhere.”

“I guess I’m done here, then.”

“I guess so.”

Sehun pushed himself upright, grinding his teeth.  _Berserker._ He had heard Jongin talk about it before but he never really had the chance to look it up. Whatever it was, it would explain Kai’s unearthly strength and skills. Even Sehun had doubts that Jongin would be as good and unpredictable as Kai. “Are you friends with Kai?” Sehun asked.

Viw shook his head, lifting and dropping his shoulders. “None of us are friends here, boy. But we fear him for a reason. He’s not a lone wolf. He has a pack. And I’m not certain if you’ve known this, but the only reason we’re oppressed here is because of Kim Kai. However, he lets us take care of our business. So long we keep our end of the bargain, he will make sure that his brother keeps theirs.”

Sehun’s eyes narrowed and he balled his hands into fists. He could give them a reason to fear him this instant. Sehun would really like to know what Viw would have to say if he knew that Sehun almost had Kai’s neck snapped beneath his foot. “Will you tell Kai about our… meeting?”

“I look after my kind before anything else.” Viw assured him with a nod of his head. “If you need help in any other way, come to me. Anything but provoking the wolves.”

Sehun burst out of the night bar, letting the rain souse him as he hurried to his car.  _Fuck._  He hissed mentally, wanting to punch through a wall. He had been focusing on the wrong brother all this fucking time. The Vampires feared Kai. Not Jongin. Not the First Alpha, but the Second in line. Without Kai in the picture, the wolves would have no weapon. Without Kai, Jongin would have no weapon.

 

 

 

 

Half of the class was absent and Sehun could only deduce that it was due to the party last night. The party which he did not attend. And Jongin was part of the half. Sehun kept his head low the entire Math class, scraping the paint off his pencil, grinding and gritting his teeth. Jongin was still not answering his phone and Sehun had not seen Kai in the morning either. He was running out of plans. But it was clear to him that in order to get the Vampires to start acting, he needed to eliminate Kai. Which was going to be so damn difficult because Kai probably had Sehun read through and through since he had even gone to Viw last night with the precise notions of what Sehun was aiming at. Sehun needed another strategy. One that Kai would not be able to predict.

If Kai were sure that Sehun wanted to meet Viw to make some sort of deal, what was the whole flirting thing about? What was he trying to do? While Sehun was being completely predictable, Kai was entirely the contrary.

Sehun realized that he was scowling only when he snapped the pencil into two.  _I’m avoiding Kai. I’m avoiding him too much. I’m playing too safe._ That was it. Kai knew it darned well. No matter what, Sehun would never allow himself into the danger zone while Kai was there.

_Something unpredictable._

Sehun snapped out of it before he jolted up and hastened out of the classroom in the middle of the lesson. He went through the school’s online schedule and checked for Kai’s classes. Chemistry. N2.

He broke into a jog to the classroom and the scent stung his nose, confirming Kai’s presence in the area. He shoved the door open and the teacher froze with his whiteboard marker in his hand. “Can I help you?”

Sehun scanned the classroom and the paralyzed students before he spotted Kai deliberately pretending to be taking notes with his lips quirked into a smirk. Sehun had no idea if Kai even bothered to comb his hair because it was sticking out everywhere like he had just had sex, or a really bad fight. “I need to see Kim Kai.” Sehun spat, keeping his eyes on Kai.

“Reason?”

Sehun shot the teacher a glower. He didn’t bother to reply as he strutted in and marched straight over to Kai before grabbing him by the arm and hauled him to his feet. “Hi.” Kai smiled.

Sehun gripped his arm, wanting crush a couple of bones there as he dragged Kai out of the class. He jerked Kai up the lockers once they were in the empty hallway and grabbed the collars of Kai’s leather jacket. “What are you playing at, huh?” he snarled, but Kai only smirked in return. “You knew I was going to see Viw last night. You knew why I was going. You act like you fucking know everything! Are you trying to mess with my head? Why did you kiss me? Was it just a stunt to prove something to Jongin or are you just that fucking prick who can’t stand his own brother being happy?!”

“Oh, so what?” Kai’s smile was long gone and his eyes were dark as ever, penetrating through Sehun’s gaze. “It’s fine with you when Jongin said that he wants you but it’s not believable when I say it because I have an attitude problem?”

“Take your act elsewhere, you heartless piece of desperate bitch. I’m not Jongin. If you think that I’ll ever fall for that, think again. What do you want? You wanna know if I have an ulterior motive? Yeah, I fucking do. What are you gonna do about it, huh?”

Kai’s brows were knitted into a scowl and his jaw was locked as he stared at Sehun.

“You wanna kill me?” Sehun challenged him. “Bite me again? Go ahead. You wanna rip my head off? You’re welcomed to try. Go on, you worthless fuck!” he jammed Kai into the lockers and staggered back. Kai stood against the lockers, staring relentlessly at Sehun. “Or are you gonna tell Jongin? He’s whipped, Kai. Unless you get him to hate me, he’s never gonna believe a word that you’ll say.”

“Do you love him?” Kai blurted out, glaring like a kicked dog.

Sehun blinked in confusion. “What…? Why are you even asking that?”

Kai let out a heavy sigh and rubbed his forehead. “You wouldn’t believe it. But I kissed you that night  _and_ yesterday because I wanted to. Believe it or not. So if you think that I’m gonna rip your head off… Sehun, I’d rather inflict other sorts of pain on you. But of course, you wouldn’t believe me. Because I’m a monster unlike my brother who’s apparently every person’s Prince Charming. Well, you’re a worse monster, Sehun. And fuck, it wasn’t my brightest idea to have taken interest you because that’s fucking backfiring right now.”

“What… are you even talking about?”

“Let me blunt.” He stepped closer. “I… want… you. So drop whatever that you have in mind right this instant because even if you fucking have  _me_  whipped, it would not stop me from ripping your heart out. I’m not Jongin, as you had said. But I’m also not an ordinary Werewolf. There’s nothing complicated behind that, Sehun. I’m not playing at anything here. I fucking want you.” There was nothing gentle in the way he said it. It was filled with aggression and roughness. “I’m not trying to manipulate Jongin into anything, I’m sure as hell not trying to get you in a trap. From the night I kissed you when you were at your weakest, I wanted you.”

Sehun wanted to retreat. But he ended up staring into Kai’s alarming, yet mesmerizing eyes. “You… don’t make… any sense. You  _hate_  me.”

“It’s not my fault that my body doesn’t listen to my mind.” He scoffed and stepped back. “You can hate me, though. After all, I am that monster, aren’t I? Only that… I know what sort of monster  _you_  are, Sehun. And I don’t think Jongin will find you as charming if he knew.”

Sehun stood there, quiet and still. Kai edged even closer and Sehun brought his hand up to pin it to Kai’s chest to create distance between them. “I have no time for this. And I find this very hard to believe.”

Kai pursed his lips and lowered his head. “Why? Because I was more real to you than anyone else? Because we’re naturally enemies?”

“Because you tried to get rid of me multiple times. And now you’re claiming that you want me because your body says so? Which part of this makes sense to you?”

“Fine... Fine.” He pulled away, shaking his head. “I wish I could just… wow.” He sighed and started to walk away.

 

 

 

 

_Berserker._

Sehun flipped the pages of the new book that he had gotten from the Town Library and he grimaced at the content of the aged book. He was not sure to what extent it was the truth, but they seemed to give him an idea of the types of Werewolves that roamed the world.

For a long moment, Sehun sat there, staring at the stamina and strength information of a Berserker. Berserkers weren’t the strongest of the lycanthrope but they were, without a doubt, a bloodthirsty beast. Even for someone as Kai, Sehun could not imagine it. Maybe the book was exaggerating the details. Nevertheless, Sehun understood that not even he stood a chance against a Berserker in his true form. He closed the book and fixed his eyes on the cover of the book, wondering if Kai really were that bestial. As far as Sehun’s memory permitted, Kai had been nothing but gentle the night he cured Sehun.

Heaving an exasperated breath, Sehun grabbed hold of his phone and tried for Jongin only to be rejected again. Did Kai kill him?

Sehun shook that thought away. It was absurd. Kai cared for Jongin. Sehun knew that Jongin was unaware of that—but then again, Jongin was unaware of many things. It was better that way.

Perking up, he hurried to the window when he heard the car’s tyres on the gravel that covered the driveway and fought the urge to rub his eyes when he reckoned Kai’s SUV. “Shit.” He murmured under his breath and jolted downstairs in the blink of an eye before he was out of the house before Kai was even out of his car. “What’re you doing here?!”

“How good are you with sniffing Vampires with Wolfsbane?” Kai rasped, bursting out of the car.

“What?”

Without an explanation, Kai grabbed Sehun’s wrist and shoved him into the car. “I need your help.”

“Are you insane?! Why would I help  _you_?!”

“Because…” Kai trailed off as he jumped into the driver’s seat. “Because… well…”

Sehun raised his brows. “Holy shit. I’m your only Vampire friend here, aren’t I?”

“No! Because your ass is the only ass I’d like to look at when you’re bending sniffing the ground for Vampire scents.” He scoffed, pulling the car out of the driveway.

Sehun winced and cringed, rolling his eyes. “I’m in my shorts! And I’m not even wearing shoes! And I fucking will not help you!”

“I’ll stop poking my nose into your business if you help me with this one. Does that sound like a deal?”

“Like hell I’m gonna take your word for anything.”

“I saved your life once. You owe me one.”

“Yeah, that cancels out the fact that you bit me in the first place.”

* * *

 

There was an emptiness in his chest. A hollow space that was desperate to be filled with something… anything. Jongin wanted to be mad, and he could not. He wanted to be sad, but it was not an option. All the he could feel right now was emptiness. Something had torn itself away from him just as Kai had a long time ago. Only that this time, it felt even more painful with the already accumulated pain. He stood before the mirror and stared aimlessly at his reflection. He had been locked up in his room the entire day, refusing to even entertain Kai and his mother who repeatedly knocked on his door earlier in the morning. He was not sure that he was ready to face the world—or Sehun for that matter—after what he had done last night. There were chocked tears. The quietness and emptiness fitted together like stacked spoons. There was a snuffling in the hollows at the base of his throat.

They had held each other close, long after it was over. They had shared the night in hideous guilt and grief. Jongin, who had betrayed both his cousin and Sehun. Adrian, who had betrayed himself. The sort of feelings and emotions that Jongin had undergone last night cannot be compared to any of his feelings for Kai in the past years. It was incomparable. What he had shared with Kai had been somewhat subtle. What he had  _exchanged_ with Adrian last night was unbearably painful.

Every wall that Jongin had built had crumbled. He sank into the bed again, clutching his shirt by the heart and closed his eyes, trying to steady his breath. But every time he closed his eyes, Adrian’s touches, kisses and whispers surged into his mind like a monstrous whirlpool.

* * *

_With water dripping off his hair and the tips of his fingers, Jongin stepped out of the cubicle and helped himself to a fresh towel. His hands had stopped shaking a long time ago. But his heart had started wavering instead. After wiping and drying his front and face, Jongin started for the door, tying the towel around his waist with beads of warmed water trickling down his back. Adrian did not reject him. He had simply walked away. He had not pushed Jongin away. He had stopped him. So… Kai was telling the truth._

_Jongin despondently walked out of the bathroom and squinted at the only dim yellow light in the room which emitted from the bedside table. That instant, the night seemed too quiet to digest. The calm and soothing ambience lulled Jongin into a euphoric state as he stared into the emptiness of the air. The white curtains were pulled close over the large window wall, restricting any extra light into the bedroom. The rain was sharp and cold outside, but in here, it was just as cold, only that all that Jongin could feel was the heat that coursed through his entire body, stirring the blood in his loins. Midnight fell like a rich velvet blanket of black, swallowing up the young night, draining the colours to pitch black and then to nothing at all. Jongin was wrapped by the cold, burning within as his eyes fell on Adrian who was settled on his side in the king-sized bed with the white cover draped until the mid of his abdomen and his hand tucked between the side of his head and the pillow. Beneath the elusive yellow light, Adrian’s tanned, perfectly sculpted face glimmered. There was an undeniable amount of lust, sheened in his eyes as he watched Jongin stare at him. No stated words were exchanged. Only silence and looks of their yearning gazes. Jongin was lusting over a distraction, even if he knew it would hurt Adrian. And Adrian was longing for something that he had not imagined—but had dreamt—he would achieve._

_Did Jongin even care for Adrian? Did Adrian mean anything at all to him? How oblivious had Jongin been when Adrian yearned for his mate? Or did Jongin deliberately chose to neglect anything that regarded Adrian? He was not the bad guy here. What about Adrian? His wife’s grave had not even grown grass and he was already making a move on someone else because he had imprinted on him? Even that did not excuse his improper wants. On the other hand, had Adrian ever made a move on Jongin? When he was sober at least. Jongin dropped his eyes, breaking their locked gazes momentarily when he realized that he was deliberating who was on the nice court here. Why was he trying to pin the blame on Adrian for something that he wanted to do? Why did he want Adrian to look worse?_

_When he brought his eyes up again, Adrian was still relentlessly watching him. His damp hair was still soaked, but it was not dripping anymore. Jongin’s eyes travelled to Adrian’s toned and hard chest that steadily heaved. Adrian was calm. Jongin, however, had lost it all tonight. He was exhausted to even think about his fight with Kai, Kai kissing Sehun, Sehun being bitten by Kai and choosing to hide it away from him. For once, Jongin wanted to do something selfish. A little too selfish that it would break him apart. He wanted the pain._

_A distraction._

_He untied the towel and let it fall to the floor. He stood still for a moment to let Adrian watch him fully now. But even now, Adrian’s eyes did not go an inch lower to Jongin’s face. Jongin felt his breath quicken as his heart began to swell when Adrian pulled the cover aside to make space for Jongin. Adrian wanted him. He wanted Jongin more than Jongin can ever want him._

_Jongin thought about turning the lamp off as he slid into the bed with Adrian, but he did not. He wanted to look at Adrian. All of him. Once he was under the cover—the same cover as Adrian—Jongin settled his head on the pillow and fixed his eyes on Adrian’s. There was a huge distance between them and yet, Jongin could hear and feel Adrian’s ragged breath._

_If Jongin wanted to bail, he should do it right this instant before they could go any further. But he didn’t. Instead, he coldly watched Adrian extend an arm before his warm fingers touched Jongin’s cheek. Under the fingertips, Jongin heard and felt Adrian’s heartbeat rising. The hand slowly crept across the flushed cheek and latched itself on the nape of Jongin’s neck. His eyes fell half lidded when Adrian entangled his fingers around his wet hair at the nape and pushed himself up halfway, propping on his elbow before he hovered above Jongin. Lying on his back, Jongin allowed Adrian to mount over him before Adrian paused. Both their lips were parted, silently gasping for air as they stared into his each other’s eyes._

_Jongin clenched his eyes tight when Adrian leaned down. First, his hot breath stroked Jongin’s quivering lips. And then he felt a set of warm, soft lips brush his own while Adrian clutched his hair at the back. It felt… fire. The kiss was… soothing. And at the same time it was… dangerous. For a moment, Jongin forgot how to breathe with Adrian’s lips against his own. He felt Adrian’s longing. His yearning to feel those lips. His yearning to hold Jongin. His yearning to feel Jongin in his arms. Jongin felt it all._

_Adrian disconnected their lips with merest brush of their lips and left Jongin with a paltry giddiness. He dared himself to open his eyes and look at Adrian. In the silent yellow light, he met Adrian’s sinful gaze and that was when Adrian lowered down to kiss him again. It was a chaste kiss at first. But only within seconds, Jongin grabbed Adrian’s hair and fisted it while his other hand was pressed on Adrian’s burning back and the kiss naturally deepened. Adrian shifted to properly mount Jongin, between Jongin’s knees while their mouths desperately kissed, gasping into one another. Jongin felt Adrian’s thick, large cock pulsate against his own shaft when Adrian lowered his hips. “Ahh…” a shy moan escaped Jongin’s lips when their cocks were pressed together and he furiously pulled Adrian for long, deep and hungry kiss. His lips throbbed, but not as much as his heart. Under the white covers, their bodies were blooming into one as Jongin spread his legs apart. Adrian was now lying on top of him, chests and abs pressed together along with their lips. “Uhh…”_

_Adrian used the opportunity when Jongin gasped to slide his tongue in. It was both a welcoming and an intruding feeling as Adrian’s tongue ventured Jongin’s warm insides. Jongin dug his fingernails into Adrian’s damp scalp, lifting his legs to wrap them around Adrian’s waist. It felt spectacular to hold his warm body. Adrian’s cock was hardening by the second against Jongin’s and Jongin’s eyes flew open in a pleasurable shock when Adrian rocked his hips forward, grinding them with Jongin’s. Another moan was suppressed by Adrian’s tongue when their cocks rammed against one another, creating a dangerous and wonderful friction._

_Jongin bit back on a string of moans as he placed wet kisses along Adrian’s shoulder while Adrian peppered his neck with hot, sloppy kisses which sparked so many nerves within Jongin. He managed to stifle back a cry when Adrian latched his teeth on his collarbone before he cruelly sucked on it, leaving a bright red mark behind as he pinned Jongin’s hand to the pillow, clasping it with his own. And all the while, his hips were desperately grinding against Jongin’s, his cock aching for more friction. It did not take too long before their lips were locked again, sucking and abusing one another while Adrian began to hump Jongin, pounding his cock and balls._

_That moment, Jongin realized that Adrian was not going to do more. He was not going to penetrate Jongin. For some odd reason, it left a basket of disappointment in Jongin’s heart._

_He felt completely shattered when he heard Adrian moan for the first time—a deep, guttural noise that sent Goosebumps down Jongin’s body. He wanted more. He wanted Adrian to touch him everywhere. He wanted to touch Adrian everywhere. “Fuck.” Adrian hissed as he picked up the pace of his humps and thrusts and slammed his mouth onto Jongin’s again._

_Jongin’s cock twitched and cried in a painful clench, wanting to release, wanting Adrian to release. He arched his back off the bed and into Adrian’s body with their cocks rubbing under the vulnerable shield of the covers. Every time Adrian’s long cock brushed between Jongin’s butt crack, he was lit on a brutal fire. “Adrian…” Jongin panted into his mouth and sucked on Adrian’s lower lip, grazing his teeth on it._

_Adrian moved his lips to Jongin’s cheek and then the ear. He suckled on the earlobe, panting hard himself. “Come for me.” He whispered. “Come for me, Jongin.” His voice was the gentlest now. That instant. Jongin felt like all of his walls had been demolished._

_A loud cry broke out of Jongin’s mouth when he came with Adrian still humping him. And when Adrian came, he stained all of Jongin’s hips and stomach with hot ropes of semen. And all the while, he gripped Jongin’s hand against the pillow so hard that he might have crushed it._

_They stayed panting for a minute, catching their breath. Jongin hoped for Adrian to embrace him. Kiss him again._

_But instead, Adrian got off him at once and retreated to the bathroom without a single word while Jongin laid there, completely spent and wrecked, but still wanting for more._

* * *

 

“This is technically called kidnapping.”

Although most of Kai’s expression remained serious, a corner of his lips twitched into a smirk as he shifted the gear with one hand steering the vehicle. “Well, you can always get out of the car if you want. But you don’t. Because you’re curious.”

Sehun licked his lips as his brows furrowed into a scowl. He honestly did not know what to make of this. So first Kai wanted to rip his heart out. And then he came to Sehun’s bedroom that night to make things right—not to mention the unnecessary second kiss. Sehun could even disregard that since Kai could have gotten carried away by the moment. Then he showed up out of nowhere, drunk and pissed as hell, making crude and vulgar confessions which made no sense whatsoever. The next day, he forcefully kissed Sehun—he would admit that it was a kiss that he had never experienced before, filled with aggression and urge to dominate—and warned him to not to let anyone else touch him. And after today, Sehun was not sure that he could predict anything that Kai did or foresee anything that he had in mind. But one thing was certain. After the night when Sehun was bitten and cured by Kai, Kai had not done anything to hurt him. He did however, left not-so-subtle hints which only boggled Sehun’s mind further.

Was he for real? Right now, Sehun needed to be careful. He had to take his steps carefully. No one knew what Kai had in store for him. Everything that Kai had done thus far had been beyond Sehun’s envisage and he could not even hazard a guess on what Kai was planning. Maybe he was not scheming anything at all. Maybe he was just playing with Sehun’s mind. But for what benefit? Not in this life was Sehun going to buy the whole ‘I want you’ act. Well, maybe ‘I want you, so that I can rip out and grill your heart before feeding it to a horse’ would seem legitimate. However, it did not stop Sehun from wondering what if… Kai really did want him.

 _No._ He shook the ridiculous thought away. But he certainly was tempted by the opportunity of Kai’s yearning. If Kai really  _did_  want Sehun, then he had just handed himself to Sehun, on a silver platter. With a noose around his neck. At that moment, Sehun peered out the window, staring at the lonely, dark road that seemed endless. If only he could turn back time and choose his paths right. It would have been better if he had focused on destroying Kai since the beginning. Maybe Jongin never would have been involved in this web of treachery. Jongin deserved better. Way, way better. Or maybe both Jongin and Kai deserved to rot in hell.

What was Sehun doing? He was bloody pitying a Werewolf because of his puppy infatuation on Jongin?! Had it been in another life, in another world, he would have want to be with Jongin. He still did. But he did not see any hope for them in the future. The point was, if Sehun had known that Kai held all the ends in this town, he would have planned to eradicate Kai, not Jongin. Because apparently, Kai was heartless. He was a monster and did not deserve to live. While Jongin did.

Sehun glanced over at Kai and stared at him for a moment.  _Heartless._ Wasn’t he, himself just as heartless?

“What do you mean by  _curious_?” he questioned, wondering if Kai really had him figured.

Kai shot him a very short glance before returning his attention back to the road and steering wheel. Unlike Sehun, he was properly dressed for a cold night. Black jeans and boots and under his black leather jacket, he wore a black shirt. Shirt. It always felt weird to see Kai in a shirt. His hair was swept to the side, but quite messily and it looked damp as if he had just gotten out of shower. Sehun sharpened his sense. Kai did smell of soap and his musky aftershave mingled with his Werewolf dog stench. But Sehun had gotten quite used to the stench.  _Aftershave_. Sehun scanned Kai’s jawline. He had shaved. It didn’t take Sehun longer than two seconds to study all of Kai’s outer appearance. He might need more than a lifetime to understand his mind, though. “You wanna know why on earth I’d need a Vampire at this hour of the night.” Kai answered without looking at Sehun, but he kept his expression vague as always. “But you’re also paranoid. However, fearing me would be a stupid move than to fight me, right?” he scoffed. “Don’t worry. I have no intention of chopping your limbs off and making soup with them.”

Sehun kept mum. There was nothing to contradict. Kai had once again read through and through him. “Wolfsbane, you said. So you are…  _allergic_  to it?”

Kai arched a brow. “No. I’m allergic to peanuts. Wolfsbane can kill me.”

“Well, that’s some useful information.”

“Good luck trying to find some, though.” He shrugged. “We can’t pick up anything when there’s Wolfsbane. Adrian was right. He said that we couldn’t pick up any Vampire scent at the killing spots because their scent is covered by Wolfsbane.”

Oh. So that was why Kai needed him. To solve the mystery. “Or maybe it wasn’t a Vampire that went on a murdering spree. Maybe  _you’re_  being too paranoid.”

“We’ll know that in a moment. We can’t pick up Vampire scent when there’s Wolfsbane. And we can’t recognize the Wolfsbane scent either. But you can. Vampires can pick up their own kind’s scent.”

Sehun’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t call us leeches anymore?”

Kai pursed his lips and Sehun notice his jaw tighten.

Letting out a soft chuckle to mock Kai, Sehun said, “Are you sure you want to share all this information with  _me_? I mean I’m not exactly your biggest fan. For all that you know, I could use this against you. And what makes you think I’ll even tell you the truth?”

“Nothing.” Kai sighed. “If you help me find this Vampire, I might spare the lives of the other Vampires.”

Sehun blinked rapidly with his lips parted to gape at Kai. “What?”

Shrugging, Kai smirked. “I will get rid of every last one of the bloodsuckers in this town if we don’t find the Vampire that’s causing all these murders.”

“You can’t do that. You have a treaty. Jongin will never something like that happen.”

“Oh, why? Because he’s in a love with a Vampire? Believe me, Sehun. I have my ways with him and something tells me that you guys aren’t on the best terms right now.”

“No. Because he’s a far better person than you are and is actually compassionate.”

“What do  _you_ know about compassion, Sehun?” Kai snorted mockingly. “Didn’t you kill an innocent girl because you were pissed off?”

“Then why would you  _want_  someone like  _me_?!”

Kai shot him a glaring look and quickly averted his gaze. They remained in silence for a long moment with a tensed wave of heat rushing between them.

“Okay.” Sehun snapped, shifting in his seat. “Question—even if I’m some evil villain as you suppose, I’m still Jongin’s boyfriend. You kissed me right in front of your brother. Do you seriously don’t care about Jongin’s feelings? Are you  _that_  stone-hearted?”

“We’re both shitty people, I guess.” His answer seemed flat and blunt and exhausted. He pulled the car over to the roadside as Sehun gaped at him, trying to make sense of Kai, anything about Kai. For a moment, Kai sat there, gripping the steering wheel even if the car had come to a stop. Then he glanced over at Sehun with a frown. “You are trying, aren’t you? Trying to be real with Jongin?”

Sehun looked away. No one could have put it in a better way. He was  _trying._ Trying to be real with Jongin. “I like him. And I want to be with him. If that’s what you’re asking.”

Lowering his gaze, Kai stared at Sehun’s exposed thighs for a moment and glanced away, biting his lower lip. “I’m not trying to steal you away from him.”

“I still don’t know what you’re trying to do. I don’t think anyone does actually.”

“Why? Because I’m always a complicated person and it seems impossible for me to be blunt?”

“Essentially. Yes.”

Kai was silent. When he met Sehun’s eyes, he held his gaze. His lips were parted and his breathing was slow and shaky. He rested one elbow on the shoulder of the seat while his other hand rested on the steering wheel. His gaze penetrated Sehun’s with yearning. That instant, Sehun knew that Kai was hiding many things. But the  _want_ was not one of them. “I wasn’t lying, Sehun. I’m not lying. Don’t ask me how or why. I want you.”

“Stop saying that.”

“Yes! I did so many things to hurt you! Since the beginning! And I still might hurt you. But can’t you see that I’m fucking hesitating these days?!”

“Hesitating? You freaking hate my guts!”

“Jesus fucking…” he trailed off and fisted Sehun’s t-shirt by the chest before hauling him so close that their noses almost brushed. Sehun froze again, eyes widened and jaw dropped. He was never getting used to Kai pulling and pushing him like this as if he owned Sehun. “Do you know how much effort I need to take every single day now to not to pounce you everywhere I see you? I want you to think of me.”

Sehun confusedly looked into Kai’s dark eyes, hoping to find answers. “Why?” he let out, eyes slowly lowering to stare at Kai’s slightly quivering lips. “What made you like me now?”

“When I kissed you that night and you let me because you thought I was Jongin. Because you were in love with Jongin. It never would have crossed your mind that I had the heart to cure you.” his hand calmly climbed up Sehun’s chest and it was soon curled around the back of Sehun’s neck. “Something… triggered within me that night. And I’m… willing to see that side of you which Jongin sees, Sehun. So let me.” His tone sounded pleading, but the roughness remained. Sehun could hear Kai’s heart pounding against his ribs as his throat tightened.

“Let go.” Sehun replied in a very low voice and drew back, pulling Kai’s hand off his nape and got out of the SUV. The night air felt fresh and the road was bordered by the forest which led up to the mountains. The gravel road prodded under the bare sole of Sehun’s feet and the crisp wind touched his legs, arms and face. Kai stepped off the car and slammed the door shut but Sehun didn’t dare to turn and face him. Only a fool would believe Kai. Then what was Sehun doing here, completely perplexed by Kai’s confession? He needed to remain calm. He shouldn’t let Kai get into his head. He did not need this right now.

But then again, he could use this attention that Kai was giving him for his own advantage. Sehun was sure that he wouldn’t feel half as guilty if he were playing Kai, not Jongin. He hated Kai. So naturally, he could give two damns about Kai and his feelings. That was if Kai were not planning something devious with all of his blunt confessions. He had to think quick. On one hand, he needed Kai’s friendship more than he needed Jongin’s love. But he’d rather shoot himself in the foot than befriend the most underhanded man Sehun had met in his entire lifetime. Pros and cons. Pros—if Kai’s intentions were genuine, Sehun would have a wonderful upper hand in getting rid of Kai himself and he would have the support of the rest of Vampires in this town who fear Kai. Cons—if Kai were actually conspiring something against Sehun, then Sehun would get himself a ticket to Hell. But what other options did he have? Continue to manipulate Jongin who had no power over Kai who had every power over the Vampires here, who the Werewolves were intimidated by? That would get him nowhere. Worse came to worst, he could get Jongin to leave the town. Then what? Kai would rise to the throne.

On the other hand, why was Kai serving everything to Sehun? It was a little dubious that he was being careless in blurting things out to Sehun as if they had been friends for years. He was usually a careful person, even if he were reckless in terms of attitude.

“If you’re done moping over rejecting the sexiest beast in this world, can we get going?” Kai’s question snapped Sehun from his thoughts and he turned around to face Kai with a glower.

“Excuse me? I wasn’t moping.” It was impossible to believe that Kai looked lively again as if the conversation in his car had never happened. “If anything, you should be the one moping.”

“Why should I?” he started into the forest, ducking under the police’s ‘do not cross’ tapes and Sehun followed after him, wincing at his bare feet. “I know that you’ll want me soon enough.”

“Want. Want.” Sehun repeated sotto voce, feeling the damp soil under his feet before he stepped on a moss.  _Want._  “That’s delusional.”

“It’s optimism.” He climbed up the hill, kicking the tree roots out of the way and Sehun licked his lips. Was he removing the roots so that they won’t touch Sehun’s feet?

“Does Adrian know we’re here?”

“Nope. It’s the tenth kill this month.”

A frown crumped Sehun’s brows. “Are they all humans?”

“They  _were._ ”

“I’ve never heard of any Vampire that leaves such sloppy marks behind.”

“This one obviously wants attention.” He deliberately hopped over a thorny fern as if to warn Sehun. He waited until Sehun had crossed the bunch of fern before he started up the hill again. “How many years have you lived?”

“6 times as you.”

Kai let out a whistle of impression. “No wonder you’re so good at History. You must have experienced all of them yourself.” He snickered and Sehun scowled, steadying himself with a hand on a tree when he tripped a little.

“Douchebag.” He hissed under his breath and heard Kai chuckle. “So you’re gay, huh?”

“Why? You interested?”

Sehun felt like a fist down his throat. “Has anyone told you how much of an ass you are?”

“No. Enlighten me.”

“A huge one. A tremendously humongous ass!”

“Then you must really enjoy the sight from back there.”

Sehun’s eyes automatically darted to Kai’s ass and he quickly looked away, choking on his own tongue. He unconsciously glanced at Kai’s ass again. His black jeans were so tight and Sehun was glad that he wasn’t the one walking at the front or else Kai would have commented plenty on his ass, especially since he was wearing beach shorts.

They continued up the mountain in silence for a moment and Sehun was extra cautious of his steps. The last thing he needed right now was to fall on his bum. But all of his efforts went down the drain when Kai came to an abrupt halt and in order to stop himself from bumping into Kai’s back, Sehun staggered back and accidentally tripped over a root. Just when he almost started to use his supernatural speed to stop himself from falling back down the hill, Kai spun around and grabbed his t-shirt and yanked him forward until Sehun’s chest collided with Kai’s. “What kind of sloppy motherfucking Vampire are you?!” he snapped at Sehun, fisting Sehun’s t-shirt.

“I didn’t need you to save me!” Sehun shoved Kai’s fist off his t-shirt. “Stop being so dominant over everything.”

“The only thing that I wanna be dominant over is…” he stopped himself, clenching jaw and scowling before shaking his head. “We’re almost there.” He pointed at the crime scene that was framed by the ‘do not cross’ tapes.

Sehun shifted his glare from Kai to the spot of the murder. He could not catch a whiff of any Vampire scent. He looked back at Kai and started for the spot. “Stay here.”

“Why?”

“’Cause you’ll contaminate the area with your goddamn stench.”

“I… I don’t have a  _stench._ Fuck you.”

“No, thank you.” he almost tip-toed to avoid the thorns. He still hadn’t decided on whether to tell Kai the truth or not.

He came to a complete stop and was entirely paralyzed even before he reached the ‘do not cross’ tape. There was foreign scent. It was pungent, yet light and vague. Wolfsbane. And amidst that, Sehun’s nose stung with a very familiar scent. Very, very familiar. It froze him in his spot and drained all hope, dreams and feeling from within him, replacing them with a feeling of despair, hopelessness and most of all, fear. Its claws cut through his body and wrapped around his brain. It choked his throat and left his body dry heaving, desperately trying to rid him of all this. Black mist swirled at the edges of his mind, drawing him into its open arms. The enormous engulfing terror that made him so sick, in his mind and body. The adrenaline flew over his veins like a carp through the river, but he couldn’t move a single muscle, not even to scream. The absolute horror completely paralyzed him, and the more he thought about run away, or simply moving a bit, the more he felt discouraged and utterly terrified.

The scent.

His father.

“Sehun?”

Sehun turned on his heel at once and broke into a sprint back to Kai. “Come with me!” he yelped and carelessly grabbed Kai’s jacket’s sleeve before dragging him away from there.

“What the hell?! What’re you doing?!” Kai grunted, unable to keep up with Sehun’s speed. “What did you sense?” he gasped, yanking Sehun to a stop and forced Sehun to face him.

All words were choking Sehun’s throat, unable to free themselves. But when they managed, Sehun sounded like he was scared. He  _was_ scared. But Kai cannot know that. “We sh-sh-should go.”

That instant, Kai’s eyebrows knitted into a lour. “Why? What is it? What—”

Sehun clasped a hand over Kai’s mouth and stared into Kai’s eyes before his gaze shot over Kai’s shoulder and into the darkness of the woods. It was pitch black in there. But every single inch of Sehun’s body cried in fear.

_He is there. He is here._

Turning his gaze back to Kai’s, Sehun breathlessly gasped in silence, “Kiss me.”

Kai blinked a ‘what’ with Sehun’s hand covering his mouth.

“That’s what you want, right?! Kiss me.” He dropped his hand from Kai’s mouth and gripped Kai’s hair at the back of his head, slamming their bodies together. Kai looked confused for a second but as soon as Sehun fisted his other hand around his shirt at the abs, Kai gave in and shoved Sehun back against a tree and smashed their lips together. He desperately tried to hide how fearful he was. He could control the tremor in his lips to a degree. He could consciously will his body movements to be less stilted. The next thing he knew, Kai had slammed his lips harder to his ow and nearly knocked all wind from his lungs. Sehun hardly had a moment to react before Kai pressed his tongue to the seam of Sehun’s lips and, at Sehun’s grant of access, delved inside his mouth. It was a very sloppy kiss with the strong scent of lust being exchanged in the intermingling of their billowing breaths. Sehun’s arms reached up and tangled around Kai’s lean but strong neck. In an instant, Sehun had pulled away and arched up into Kai’s broad chest, moaning in the contact of body heat against his own, before he drew back into his lips. Sehun could nearly feel the slight burn of their saliva as it rolled off Sehun’s tongue and seeped down his throat with every push of Kai’s tongue against his. Kai gripped the side of Sehun’s waist hard and mercilessly as Sehun yanked Kai’s hair, lightly moaning into his mouth.

* * *

 

Fear and trepidation gurgled in the pit of his belly as he kept his eyes over Kai’s shoulder, peering into nothingness and the darkness of the forest. He could not see anything past the dense trees but he was there. Sehun was certain that he was there. He was watching. Sehun messily gripped Kai’s hair and jacket as Kai greedily kissed him, all teeth and tongue.

And then it was gone without warning. The fear vanished out of the sudden signalling the shift of it. Sehun blinked vacantly, staring at the horizontal abyss of darkness as the fear lifted from his chest. He almost went limp and crumbled to his knees but only then did he realize Kai’s brutal grip on the sides of his waist which was holding him up and against the tree. Their mouths were still very much connected and so were their hips and chest. For a moment, Sehun froze as he acknowledged the kiss with an alarming panic. He was kissing Kai. Kai was kissing him. That instant, with the fear out of the way, Sehun was overwhelmed by Kai’s scent and his roughness. There was absolutely nothing tender about the kiss except for the fact that Kai was bruising Sehun’s lips faster than they could heal. All of the sudden, all that Sehun could feel was Kai’s breath gushing into his mouth while he forced Sehun’s lips to move in sync with his. Unexpectedly, Kai’s hand drifted to Sehun’s hip. It settled there and pulled him closer. Sehun gasped sharply when his hips slammed hard into Kai’s, but the gasp was swallowed whole by Kai’s mouth. Sehun was against Kai’s warm chest, chiselled to perfection.  _Perfection…_  It was not every day that Sehun admitted about Kai’s physical perfection. Sehun splayed his fingers against Kai’s chest, intending to push him away, but instead he left it there. Kai’s breathing was quickening faster than fathomable. Kai’s moans were so subtle—so faint, they were whispers—and Sehun was so close to moaning himself when Kai’s teeth stroke his lower lip. Sehun urged himself to push away, but couldn’t. His limp body began to tremble uncontrollably. It felt weird. He had never felt this sort of physical weakness in so long and he was getting so weak because of a kiss? Because of Kai’s kiss? Kai broke their lips and began to line Sehun’s jaw and the side of his neck where he had bitten once with desperate kisses. Kai’s head was angled slightly to the side as his lips came closer and closer to Sehun’s. Sehun was surprised to find his own lips parted. Their gasps mingled. Kai’s heart fluttered against Sehun’s chest. At first, it was a delicate butterfly of a kiss. Then his arms encircled Sehun.

Sehun’s brain lit on fire and the warmth spread throughout his entire body. He felt like he was being drugged. Kai’s kiss felt like both his salvation and his torment. It felt like Hell was breaking lose when Kai grabbed Sehun’s hand and slammed it to the tree trunk, pinning it by clasping his own hand against it. The kiss only turned more violent when Kai uncontrollably began to growl into Sehun’s mouth with his hand squeezing and crushing Sehun’s. Kai ripped his other hand from Sehun’s hip and curled it around Sehun’s neck. Their tongues touched again and Kai suckled on Sehun’s lower lip with his hand tightening around Sehun’s neck.  _Fuck_. Sehun could only mentally express the sort of elation he was experiencing. It was not all very new. He had had his fair share of aggression, but definitely not in this form. Their groins were almost brushing and Sehun remembered that the last thing he’d want to this with right now was with Kai. And yet, he did not want this to stop. The painful sort of pleasure Kai inflicted on him was just stunning.  _No. No, Sehun. Stop this now._

“Kai.” He gasped into the kiss and Kai only grabbed his other hand to pin it right next to the one which was already locked against the tree above his head. “S… st..op. Stop!” he forcefully pulled his hands free and shoved Kai back until the latter stumbled back with his lips parted and panting for air with a heaving chest. Sehun quickly recovered his body, although his mind remained corrupted by Kai’s grips and kisses. He wiped his throbbing lips and stayed leaned against the tree as he watched Kai catch his breath. Sehun needed to come up with a snappy excuse for all of this. And he certainly can’t use the excuse that his father was here to hunt him down. “Huh.” He let out and Kai looked up at him in a jaded state. “We should get going.” He started past Kai to get back to the car, but was forced to a stop when Kai grabbed hold of his wrist.

“What… was  _that_  about?” he asked breathlessly, frowning at Sehun.

Shrugging, Sehun faked a smirk. “Looks like you are a better kisser than your brother.”

Kai was mum in surprise as his grip loosened around Sehun’s wrist and Sehun proceeded down the hill. “Wait… Uh…” Kai turned back to peer at the murder spot. “Wait.” He hurried after Sehun and grasped his arm to turn him to face him.

“What?”

“Were you  _playing_  with me?”

Sehun only shrugged again before freeing his arm and recklessly walked over the tree roots. “What does your own medicine taste like? How does it feel? To be played with?”

Kai did not reply but Sehun could hear Kai’s breath becoming more violent and louder behind him. Within seconds, Kai overtook Sehun and raced down to the road. Sehun raised his brow, hurrying after him but only broke into a lightning jolt when he noticed Kai starting the SUV’s engine. “Guess you’ll have to crawl back home.” Kai called out through the window before stepping on it.

Sehun came to a halt at the roadside and threw his hands up in annoyance. “Hey!” he yelled after the car that was already a few meters away. “Fuck you!”

Kai stuck his arm out the window before sticking out his middle finger before the car disappeared at the junction.  _Great_. He was stuck in the middle of nowhere in his shorts, with no shoes or phone on him.

“What a first-class prick.” Sehun mumbled as he dashed for the main road, hoping to grab a cab at this hour of the night. Cab or not, he had to get out of there. And then what? He could either go home with uncertainty or go somewhere he would be safe. A moment ago, he was safe in Kai’s arms. Now what?  _Great move back there, Sehun_. He dissed himself for being stupid enough to provoke the most unpredictable man in this world.

But before he even managed to sprint halfway to the main road, he heard Kai’s SUV’s tyres screeching on the gravel road before the headlights blinded him when he glanced back. He ceased to a jog and stopped when the car halted. Kai was looking straight ahead with his jaw clenched with a hand lazily resting on the steering wheel. Shaking his head, Sehun got into the car. “You—”

“Shut up if you don’t want me to snap your neck.” Kai silently said, stepping on the accelerator, shifting the gear.

Sehun bit the inside of his cheek and turned his face to the window. Well, at least Kai forgot about the whole ‘sniffing Vampire’ thing. Sehun slowly glanced over at Kai and vacantly stared at him for a moment. Kai was nowhere near vulnerable even when he was kissing him. He was only… stronger. More aggressive. Sehun could not imagine how violent he would be when he is in his wolf form. “Kai—”

“I should have known the second you asked me to kiss you. You’re never gonna take my feelings seriously, are you?” he asked without looking at Sehun.

“I’m never gonna take the fact that you think you have feelings seriously.”

Kai fired him a hard glare and grimaced in disgust before returning his attention back to the road. “For a moment there, I thought you actually wanted it.”

Sehun licked his lips and looked away. Well, once again, Kai was correct. Sehun did want it. Only that he didn’t want Kai.

Oh God, this was all too complicated!

“You can stop here.” Sehun interrupted the silence when they reached the bottom of the hill on which his house stood. Kai stopped without disagreement and when Sehun had gotten out, he took off without a single word. Sehun stood there in the coldness, staring at the car that was long gone. He closed his eyes for a minute and brought his fingers to his lips to brush them.

No. He can’t afford to brood over this right now. He had worse matters at hand to take care of.

Rubbing his temples, Sehun climbed up to his house. It was driving him both wild and mad. Again, he could use Kai’s attraction to him for his own advantage. But why was it so difficult to convince himself that it was okay to use Kai? Well, he used him just a while ago. And now that was why he was sulking.

Frowning, Sehun lamely crossed the porch’s steps and touched the handle of his glass door. As soon as he opened it, his nerves went ice cold and his guts turned in knots. He took a step in with his heart clenching and throat tightened. Too late to turn back now. Too late to run. “Where’re you?!” he called out, taking two more steps into the house. “What the hell are you doing here, you son of a bitch?!” he bent down and grabbed a leg of the side table before ripping it off. Twisting the wooden table leg in his hand, Sehun clenched his teeth and stepped further in, gripping hard on the wooden stake.

“Is there any way to welcome your  _father_?” the voice was a low whisper in the darkness and Sehun stopped altogether. He kept his eyes on the hallway, hesitating to turn the lights on.

Then the silhouette became apparent. The shadow of a tall, broad-shouldered man emerged from the darkness of the hallway. The last time Sehun recalled seeing that figure was when he was half dying with Kai’s venom in his system. This was no hallucination. He was here. This time, he was not as dead as he seemed in Sehun’s hallucination.

Sehun took a step back as the figure edged closer. Fear crept back up his spine and Sehun almost dropped the table’s leg as he retreated back to the opened door. His father’s low chuckle almost cracked Sehun’s skull open and he forced himself a few steps back before he spun around and raced for the door. “You can’t run from me, Sehun. You know that.”

_Too late to run._

As soon as he burst out the door, he crashed hard against something…  _someone_. Sehun gasped when undeniably strong arms came around his body to steady him as Sehun’s face collided into a hard chest. He looked up at Adrian who looked just as dumbstruck. “What’s—” he stopped himself when he glanced into the house with his arms still wrapped around Sehun’s shuddering body. His face changed at once as his brows furrowed into a scowl and he released Sehun to pull his gun out.

“That’s not gonna help!” Sehun yelped and when he looked back at the house, his father was smirking at him, inching closer and closer. Sehun’s eyes shot to the stake he was holding in his hand. His father snarled out of the sudden and broke into a jolt towards the door. That was when Adrian lunged forward with a sprint and before Sehun even noticed it, he exploded into a monstrous form of black, crashing through the glass windows, shattering them and pounced Sehun’s father. Sehun’s jaw dropped as he gaped at the horrifying beast of the night growling monstrously, chasing after the man who disappeared into the house. He heard a cacophony of destruction within the house before everything went silent.

* * *

 

Shards of inexorable and unforgiving glass perforated the sole of his feet, puncturing through the soft tissues, leaving traces of blood on the tarnished floor as he wended his way into the still and dark house. Every one of the furniture was played havoc with, either partly wrecked or entirely ruined. Only a couple of minutes ago, there was a boutade of paroxysmal chaos, disrupting every silence in this isolated area. The interplay of the wolf’s yap and growl with the shatters of the content of the hallway still rang fresh in Sehun’s ears. The great black beast’s growl crackled through Sehun’s eardrums and the shrill bark pierced through the velvet night, the wolf’s glossy black fur standing on end as it bristled, pouncing at the figure which vanished from the place within a fraction of a second. The world rumbled in glorious discord that instant. But now, it was hushed and tranquil in the midst of a mess.

Sehun halted as the table’s leg slipped from his hand and dropped to the floor with a great thud. He was once again, lost. Lifeless. Meaningless. Scared. He had not an idea of what he should do for all that he could do this minute was shiver with fright. If there were anything that all—common—Vampires feared, it was Werewolves. Sehun was unfortunate to have Kai in the forest and he had been able to seem as if Kai were close to him. And now, he had to thank his lucky star that Adrian had decided to show up  _and help_  as well despite the fact that he completely must despise Sehun.

Dragging his feet to the switch, he turned the lights on and took a moment to blankly stare at the mess the hallway was in. From here, he could see shattered glass walls of the kitchen through which Adrian must have gone. He silently started up the stairs with his chest falling heavier by the second.

Now how could Sehun ever live in this town which he was supposed to win back when the man he feared the most his entire life roamed it? Only one can save him right now.

He entered his room with his head spinning a little. He had not fed the entire day and he was already worn to a frazzle. Grabbing his phone from the desk, Sehun vacantly stared at the screen before dialling for his father. His  _so-called father_.

The call was answered with silence. Sehun clenched his eyes close and let a bead of tear roll down his cheek, mentally clinging onto his father on the other end of the line. And then, “Sehun?”

“Father.” He called in a whisper. When he didn’t hear a response, his voice broke even more. “V-Vance?” He named. “I… need…  _you_. He—he’s… here.” His eyes flashed open when he heard the clatter downstairs before his nose stung with Adrian’s scent. Ending the call at once, Sehun hurried downstairs only to find Adrian walking in, stark naked with four long nail slashes at his left ribs, bleeding a little. Every part of his muscle and abs was bulging with ferocious tension, bathed in vigorous sweat. He looked like he might collapse at any time. “Adrian.” Sehun murmured and grabbed the decorative drape on the couch before plodding up to him. He almost covered Adrian with the drape but the older fell forward, crashing against Sehun as his face dropped onto Sehun’s shoulder. Grunting a little, Sehun embraced Adrian’s trembling body and steered him to the couch. “Are you okay?”

“He… got away. I lost him in the woods.”

“I knew he would.” Sehun said nonchalantly, ushering Adrian to sit on the couch. “I’m glad you’re okay.” He enveloped Adrian’s back and shoulders with the drape before brushing his fingers on the slashes at his ribs, but Adrian pushed his hand away before he even managed to probe them.

“I’m fine.”

Gnawing on his lip, Sehun flumped on the coffee table before Adrian and scrubbed his face with his bare palms. “Thank you.”

Adrian brought his head up to glare at him. “Who was he?” was the expected question which came out of Adrian’s mouth.

“You look exhausted, Adrian. Let me get you some clothes and something to drink first.” He rose to his feet only to have pulled to sit back down by Adrian.

“Who… is… he?” his tone was heavy now, but he still looked completely fatigued, close to falling unconscious.

“I’ll tell you. But first, we need to take a look at that.” He casually gestured at the nail cuts.

“You know him.” Adrian accused calmly. “He knows you. You were scared of him.”

“And you helped me. Why?”

Adrian scowled. “I look out for everyone in this town, Sehun.”

Lowering his head, Sehun licked his lips. “What were you doing here?”

There was silence.

“Look, Adrian. I would tell you. But you wouldn’t believe me.”

“Try me.” Adrian challenged him. “That’s the least you could do since it seems like I saved your butt.”

Heaving a sigh, Sehun got up. “Let me get first aid.”

“I couldn’t pick up his scent.” Adrian muttered under his breath and Sehun halted again to glance back at him. “He’s the one, isn’t it?”

Swallowing the half lump that began to rise in his throat, Sehun rubbed his forehead. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

“Okay. Fine. I don’t know if he’s the one who’s been on a killing spree in this town but I can assure you that I have nothing to do with it.” Sehun was not sure to what extent it was the truth.

Adrian tiredly leaned back on the couch and threw his head back, eyes closed. “Who is he?” he repeated the question.

Sehun pursed his lips and curled an arm around his own body as he wove his way up to the bathroom. After grabbing the largest sweatpants and sweatshirt that he had, he returned to the living room. “Here.” He handed Adrian the clothes and looked away when Adrian pulled them on. Once Adrian was settled on the couch again, Sehun knelt before him with a dabbed cotton and lifted the sweatshirt.

“Don’t.” Adrian grabbed his hand before the cotton touched the cuts. “A little Vampire infection won’t kill me and you can stop pretending like you care.”

Sehun tossed the cotton ball back into its container and scowled at Adrian. “Yeah. I really could give two damns about you. But seeming that you just helped me, I have to be at least hospitable, right?”

“Quit stalling. Tell me who is or—”

“He’s my father.” Sehun blurted out. “Okay? He’s my father who hates me to the guts.” He rose to his full height and ran his fingers through his hair.

Adrian remained expressionless. “I thought you lived with your father.”

“Foster father.” He dropped on the coffee table again. “We all have our secrets, don’t we? Mine has something to do with a father who’s hunting me down.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m an abomination?”

“He is one too.”

“He didn’t ask for it.” Sehun was close to clenching his fists as he lowered his gaze. “He was… turned… by mistake.”

“And you asked for it?”

Sehun glanced up at Adrian with a frown etched on his brows. “Yes.”

“Under what terms should I believe anything that you just said?”

“You don’t have to. But something tells me that you know that I’m not lying. And you helped me… because of Jongin, didn’t you?”

Adrian kept mum as he stared at Sehun.

“Or was it natural instinct to attack the enemy? As far as you and I know, I’m not your enemy, Adrian.”

“Not yet.” He stood up, towering before Sehun and let the couch drape fall. “If what you’re saying is the truth, I suggest that you leave this town, Sehun. For the sake of the people here. And for your own good.”

“So… you’re not gonna take any action?”

“I’m being transferred.”

“What?”

“I leave town next week. And I think it’d be best if you leave as well. Or the next time, no one’s gonna be here to save you from your daddy. I will ask the boys to search the area, patrol around the woods. But I doubt that we will be able to find him. If he’s here for you, then it’s you who we need to get rid of. You can imagine how the other wolves might react if they knew about this.”

“You’re not gonna tell anyone?” Sehun blinked in surprise because the first thing he expected Adrian to do was tell Jongin or at least Kai, if not the entire pack.

“Not as long as you either rid this town of your father or you leave. You do realize that you will have to tell Jongin about this, right? The sooner you do that, the better for both of you. And now, I don’t think this is the safest place for you to stay either.”

Sehun watched him with confusion. “He can find me anywhere.”

“He ran from me. He’s afraid of the wolves, isn’t he? Unlike you.”

“Your point?”

“Come with me.”

That instant, Sehun wondered if Adrian were being real. “Why? Why are you… even helping me?”

“Because Jongin is happy with you. Or at least, it’s you who he wants.” His face remained stone-hard but his voice trembled. “I came here to talk to you. To… ask you.”

“Ask me what?”

“Never mind that now. Are you gonna come or would you rather stay here?”

He wordlessly gawked at Adrian, contemplating the offer. Right now, the safest place Sehun could be was with the Werewolves. Although Adrian did not seem like he was Sehun’s biggest fan, his offer sounded genuine enough. “You’re doing this for Jongin, aren’t you?”

Adrian did not make a reply as he started for the door. Kai was had been right all the while even if his accusations seemed childish. Sehun could almost see the spark in Adrian’s eyes every time Jongin’s name was mentioned.

 

* * *

 

The first orange hued rays of sunrise kissed the still dust laden rubble with the same loving care as the undertaker with the recently departed. These soft rays that should have brought warmth to a new day only acted to solidify the reality of Jongin’s guilt. In the dark he had only sin and wrongfulness to contend with, but under the radiating glow of the clouded sky there was no hiding. Jongin wished with all his might that it would sink back down below the horizon so he could have more time to fret over what he had done without a single ounce of remorse at the moment. It was only hours later, sitting in the kitchen, watching as the grey light of morning bled through the forest as he peered out the kitchen’s windows. Another night was lost.

He perked his head up and glanced over at Kai who sauntered into the kitchen with a sheepish lovesick grin playing on his lips as he made his way to the sink. Jongin watched his brother drink straight from the tap before he turned to face Jongin. “Did you sleep?” he inquired nonchalantly.

“You just came home.” Jongin accused him.

“No. I was in the woods.” He jerked his chin at the forest at the back of the house. “Is something the matter? You look like you found out that you’re adopted.”

Jongin glowered at him, clenching his jaw. “And you look like you’ve just met Santa Clause.”

“Something better.” He smirked, peeling his leather jacket off. “Why have you been avoiding me all day?”

Jongin rose from the kitchen counter’s stool and started for his room before Kai grabbed his wrist. “Let go, Kai.” He had to make an escape before Kai could ask him what happened that night with Adrian.

“You didn’t tell me how it went with Adrian last night.”

Jongin ripped his wrist away and shot him a scowl. “It went good, okay?”

“Ah. Okay.” Kai raised his palms in defeat. “All right. If you say so.” There was definitely something off with Kai. He looked like had achieved something. The sheen of satisfaction that shone on his face ticked Jongin off a little. And then it became apparent. For a moment, Jongin stood there, staring aimlessly at his brother when he accredited the foreign scent that Kai was bathed in. It was not so foreign.

“Were you… with Sehun?” Jongin asked in the lowest voice possible with his eyes widened and throat choked. Kai’s smirk only stretched into a full smile as he leaned his back against the kitchen counter, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I might have been.” He shrugged.

“His… scent is… all over you…” Jongin suddenly felt nauseous.

“Well, that might have been because he was all over me?”

That instant, he lost it. All the unwanted emotions and feelings that had been building up in his chest exploded and he lurched forward to grab Kai’s shirt by the collar. “What the fuck are you talking about?!”

“Whoa, Jongin.” Kai laughed, more like snickered. “You’re allowed to come home late at night reeking of Adrian’s scent but I’m not allowed to come home with your beloved boyfriend’s scent and taste all over me?”

Jongin gulped, but kept his flaming glare on Kai. “You know nothing.”

“Oh. I don’t? Because last time I checked, you’re one pathetic liar, Jongin. Remember, brother? You wanted this, right? You wanted this stupid rivalry between us even when you absolutely have no feelings for Sehun.”

“Shut up!” his tight fist almost rammed into Kai’s face but he stopped himself when the doorbell rang. It could not be their parents since they said that they will be away for at least four days. Jongin pulled back from Kai, panting a little, clutching his hands. “Why are you doing this? Because I once liked you? Why are you trying so hard to make me hate you?”

“Not everything is about you, Jongin! Okay?! I’m allowed to want things for myself, too.”

“Sure! But not someone else’s boyfriend!”

“Tell that to Sehun. And you know what, he’s one darn good of a liar, unlike you, Jongin. So I wouldn’t be surprised if he denies the fact that he—”

Jongin shook his head and stepped back. “I’m not gonna believe anything that you say, Kai. You’re vile and repulsive and I hate you.”

Kai had his owns fists clenched at the sides with his eyes scowling at Jongin. When the doorbell rang again, Jongin jumped a little with a start and turned on his heel. “Jongin, listen to me.”

“I wish we were never brothers. I wish I never had you in my life.” He growled under his breath as he wove his way to the door. He stopped himself with his hand on the doorknob when he realized the scent was not only from Kai. Ripping the door open, he almost gasped when he met Adrian, dressed in sloppy clothes, reeking of sweat. Beside him stood Sehun, staring at Jongin with a sort of culpability in his eyes. “Adrian?” That second, Jongin’s heart skipped a beat.

“I need you to let him stay here with you for a couple of days.” said Adrian with so much fatigue in his tone. Jongin wondered if he had transformed. The last time he had seen Adrian, they were in each other’s arms, screaming in pleasure. And now, Adrian was once again the man who looked like he had lost so much.

“What?” his eyes shot over to Sehun who looked like a kicked puppy. “What happened?”

“Wasn’t my idea.” Sehun muttered, hanging his head.

“I need you to trust me, Jongin.” Adrian insisted and Jongin almost glared at him. The last time he had trusted Adrian was when held him so tight. It almost sent shivers down his spine to think that he was reminiscing about his one-time sex with Adrian when his boyfriend was right there. “You guys have a lot to catch up on.” He turned to Sehun. “Tell him everything that you told me, Sehun. Jongin, call me later. Round the pack. We’re gonna need to run the forest.”

With that, he strutted back to his car as Sehun faced Jongin with pursed lips. “Sehun, what’s going on?”

“How many times do I have to see your face in a day?” Kai chuckled behind Jongin with his breath gushing on Jongin’s nape. “It’s not exactly helping, you know.” This time, his smirk was sexual as he leaned against the doorframe, staring at Sehun.

“I need your help.” Sehun muttered, eyes fixed on Jongin and avoiding Kai at all costs.

“Come in, Sehun.” Jongin extended an arm and deliberately curled it around Sehun’s waist, pulling him into the house.

“Why haven’t you answered any of my calls?”

Kai let out a snort and Jongin felt himself tensing. “He was  _too_ busy.” Kai remarked. “But then again, weren’t you busy as well, Sehun?” Jongin knew that Sehun must have been with Kai. However, he was too scared to ask for details. He trusted Sehun. Well, he trusted Sehun more than Sehun should trust him.

“Kai, leave us alone.” Jongin snapped.

“All right. I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone.” He scoffed and started up the stairs.

“What is it, Se—” he was cut off when Sehun clutched at the sides of his head and pulled him before their lips crashed. Jongin let himself be taken away for a moment, drawn into the kiss and Sehun’s grip. It was okay. This was real. This was his life. What he had with Adrian for one night stayed in that bedroom and for all that Jongin knew, Adrian probably did not care to fight for what he wanted even if he did imprint on Jongin. He slowly slid his hands down Sehun’s back and ass as they kissed, slow and steadily. When Sehun pulled back, his smile killed Jongin a little.

“I missed you.”

“I… missed you, too, Sehun. I was just… caught up with some things.” It burned when Sehun wrapped his arms around Jongin and buried his face in Jongin’s shoulder, hugging him tight.

“I’ve… I’ve a problem, Jongin. I need your help.” His voice was barely a whisper. “Can we go talk someplace else?”

“Of course.” Jongin let his fingers stroke the soft strands of Sehun’s hair with his lips brushing Sehun’s cheek. For the first time, Sehun looked extremely vulnerable and scared with his body shivering against Jongin.

* * *

 

He half expected Jongin to burst. There was this abrupt and cruel tension between them and Sehun was not sure if he had done Jongin’s trust justice for that Jongin sat still, right next to him, back leaned against the tree trunk with his head hung low. They remained silent, seated on the roots, under the trees that sheltered so many with their spreading canopy of green and provided so much. The unfettered light illuminated the scorched ground and still that smell of burning lingers despite the light mizzle of rain which touched Sehun’s face and hands like the Scotch mist. The air was rich with the fragrance of leaves and loam, damp too along with the freshness of dawn intermingling with the drizzles.

“Jongin?” Sehun whispered, sliding his palm into Jongin’s and clasped their hands together. Jongin finally brought his head and stared at Sehun without any expression whatsoever. “What is it?”

“Why did it never occur to you to tell me about your father who’s on the hunt to kill you?” Now, Jongin seemed disappointed. A frown knitted his brows together, pulled the corners of his lips down with his gaze piercing Sehun’s eyes and Sehun could feel Jongin’s rapid breath on his face. “How much more are you hiding from me, Sehun?”

“It’s been more than three decades since the last I saw him, Jongin. I thought he would have… let go. Besides, I really didn’t think that he would find me here.” No matter what he said and was about to say, Jongin was going to remain upset.

“What happened the last time you saw him?”

“I fled the city.” He murmured. “I’m telling you the truth, Jongin.” He really was. Everything that he had told both Jongin and Adrian was the truth. He just left out the fact that his foster father was the Count.

“Is he that… powerful?”

Sehun’s hand tightened around Jongin’s as he lowered his head. “He… He is the one I fear the most, Jongin.” His voice did not surpass a whisper as he spoke. “Even since I was a child.”

For a quick moment, Sehun’s mind was cast back to the time when he was kicked repeatedly in the empty stomach that was growling in hunger. His father’s boots had left an inerasable scar on his abdomen. “Sehun, what are you talking about?” Jongin’s tone was soothing as he wrapped his arm around Sehun’s body.

Without even thinking once about it, Sehun reflexively and unconsciously buried his face in Jongin’s shoulder, nuzzling his nose in the crook of Jongin’s neck while choking on a sob. After all these years, he had not grown out of fear for his father. The despiteful man whom he was forced to call his father. Sehun barely remembered his sister’s face, his mother’s lullabies, and his friends’ comfort. But he clearly recalled every beating that he took from his father. He remembered every harsh word that had rendered him sleepless for nights, all the tears his mother had shed while her husband fooled around with other women and every last one of the things Sehun loved which were destroyed by that man.

Sehun mechanically clutched Jongin’s shirt by the chest as he clenched his eyes, trying to not to let the tears betray him. “I d-don’t want to talk a-about it.” He stuttered against Jongin’s neck. The scent was surprisingly comforting. Jongin’s warmth gave him solace and so did Jongin’s hand that was rubbing his back.

“Don’t. Then don’t talk about it.” His muttered into Sehun’s hair and let out a heavy sigh. They sat in silence for a moment with the drizzles settling down for good. “I’ll take care of it, Sehun.”

Sehun brought his head up and looked into Jongin’s eyes before his gaze was lowered to Jongin’s lips, and then back up to Jongin’s dark eyes which were much, much tenderer than Kai’s. “I used to move a lot, Jongin. Because I was scared that he might find me. But I don’t want to run anymore. This place… this town is my home now and I want to live here. With you.”

Jongin pursed his lips, blinking rapidly as if to hide something in his eyes. “Yes.” He let out and Sehun watched him in bafflement. “I’d like that, too.” He said at last and forced a smile at Sehun. “Where is your foster father now?”

“I don’t know.” That wasn’t exactly the truth. Sehun knew in which country Vance was in, but not his exact location at the moment. “I mean… he travels a lot.”

“Hm… This foster father was the one who turned you, then?”

“Yes.”

“Who turned your… real father?”

Sehun clenched his jaw. “ _I_  did.” He lied. “It was by… accident. My blood was in his system when I tried to heal him from a… wagon accident. And the next thing I know, he was killed while my blood was in his system.”

Jongin threw him a dubious look. “Oh.”

“Jongin, just because I didn’t tell you about my father, it didn’t mean I am lying to you. Please, don’t doubt me.”

“I’m not, Sehun. You know that all that I ever do is trust you.” Jongin sighed and cupped the sides of Sehun’s face. “I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe, Sehun. I’ll round some of the boys and we’ll scour the area.” He pulled away from Sehun before rising to his feet and held out a hand. Sehun accepted the hand and let Jongin pull him to his full height.

“You will never be able to locate him as long as his Wolfsbane on him.”

Jongin’s brows furrowed. “Are you sure you don’t think he’s the one who’s murdered all those people? Adrian thinks that it’s a Vampire that’s been killing the people and he’s hiding his scent with Wolfsbane.”

“Kai brought to the mountains last night.” Sehun admitted and Jongin’s face withered at once.

“What? So you were with him?”

Sehun nodded his head. “He forced me to go with him, wondering if I would be able to pick up any Vampire scent. I did. It was him.”

“Did you tell Adrian about this?”

“No. You can’t tell either Adrian or Kai about this, Jongin. They would deduce that all those killings had happened because of me.” He pleaded. “I would have been the cause of this all and I don’t wanna make any more enemies than I already have.”

Jongin bowed his head, licking his lips. “You’re right.”

“But wouldn’t the pack need a reason for you to hunt that Vampire down?”

“Unauthorized entrance into the town would be plenty of reason. Besides, they won’t question me. So long Kai doesn’t know about any of this. I don’t want him to interfere.”

“Neither do I. But wouldn’t he be helpful? I mean, he’s a Berserker.”

“It’s just an ordinary Vampire. We can handle it.”

Sehun swallowed. His father was not exactly an ordinary Vampire. “Okay. But should I come along? To help you locate him?”

“No.” Jongin held onto the sides of Sehun’s jaw and swiped his thumbs along Sehun’s cheekbones. “I need you safe. And I need you to trust me.” Sehun expected Jongin to kiss him but instead, Jongin drew away completely and when Sehun intertwined their fingers together, Jongin’s hand shuddered. “My parents are out of town. You can stay here.” He said as they wove their way back towards the house. “I know that Kai is a prick but you’ll definitely be safe with him around you.”

“You really think so?” Sehun scoffed. He was enjoying the warmth of Jongin’s hand more than he should. He had no clue whatsoever as to how Jongin’s heat was so different when compared to Kai. Vampires’ senses were always heightened unless they choose to shut them down and as far as Sehun noticed, Kai’s heat was brutal, almost unbearable. It could almost make Sehun sweat every time he was near. Jongin’s, however, was subtle and calming. Sehun could clearly understand why Adrian would be smitten by Jongin. Who wouldn’t?

“He wouldn’t have kissed you in front of everyone if you didn’t mean something to him.” Jongin’s tone suddenly turned grave and Sehun gritted his teeth. “And you even hung out with him last night.”

“And what were  _you_ doing, Jongin? I don’t know if you’ve realized, but I’m not the one here who’s avoiding the other.”

Jongin pulled his hand free and spun around to face Sehun. “I wasn’t avoiding you!” he looked shocked, if not scared. Sehun blinked at him before raising his brow.

“Did something happen to you, Jongin?”

“No. No.” he answered quickly and started back to the house. “Just don’t hang out with Kai. I don’t want him in any of your affairs.”

“He’s not in any of my affairs, Jongin. He might have kissed me. But it meant nothing to me, okay? He’s a psychopathic sadist who enjoys making everyone’s life a miserable Hell hole.”

“He’s my brother.” Jongin snapped, halting on his pace as he snarled at Sehun. For a moment, Sehun stood still, unable to comprehend Jongin’s sudden change of attitude. “Sorry.” He apologized as quickly as he had snapped and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m just… not myself lately.”

“Yes, I can see that. I’m sorry if I offended you by telling the truth about your  _brother._ ” He snorted and strutted past Jongin, plunging his hands into the pockets of his coat.

“Sehun, I’m sorry.” Jongin jogged up to him and snaked an arm around Sehun’s waist. “I’ve decided.”

Sehun stopped to scowl at him. “What is it?”

“I’m not gonna let anyone come between us. Let bygones be bygones.”

“What bygones? The kiss?”

Jongin hesitated for a moment before he nodded his head. “Yes. And everything that both of us had done. Let’s just… forget about them.”

“Okay.”

“Okay.”

 

 

 

“If Adrian lost him nearby the forest at your house, I’m guessing that he must be roaming around the Mistday Mountains, waiting for you to return, right? We’ll start there. If you need clothes, they’re in here. You can use my bathroom.” Jongin pointed at the wardrobe and Sehun stifled a smile, sitting on Jongin’s bed. “What?”

“This is the first time I’m actually in your room, on your bed.”

Jongin’s lips stretched into a sly smirk and he walked over to Sehun before climbing onto the bed with his knees on either sides of Sehun’s thighs and he almost sat on Sehun’s lap, clinging onto Sehun’s neck. Gulping, Sehun latched his hands on Jongin’s hips, looking up Jongin. His fingers slowly made their way to Sehun’s hair at the back of his head and Jongin leaned down. “Maybe we can celebrate once I rip your father’s head apart.” He whispered, lips ghosting over Sehun’s.

“You sound like Kai.” Sehun chuckled and Jongin pulled back with a grimace before he exasperatedly got off the bed.

“I should get going.” He sighed, grabbing his truck keys. “You have everything you need in here except… food. Well, Kai can make up to that in case of blood emergency.” He shrugged.

“Yes. Please, bite me.” Kai’s voice sent a shiver down Sehun’s spine and he glanced over at the doorway. Kai smirked at him, leaning against the doorframe.

“On second thought, his blood will give me unnamed diseases, so pass.” Sehun scoffed and stood up. “Be safe.” He told Jongin who was glaring at Kai.

“Wait, where are you going?”

“I’m not obligated to tell you anything, Kai.” Jongin spat and pecked on Sehun’s cheek before starting for the door.

“Whoa. You’re leaving him here? With me?” he genuinely looked surprised as he gaped at his brother. “That’s the stupidest move since Snow White decided to an apple offered by the creepiest old hag.”

“Lay a finger on him and I will—”

“What, Jongin? You’ll  _kill_ me?” Kai smirked, biting his lip as he scanned Jongin from top to toe. “What’s going on?”

“That’s none of your business. Don’t leave the house.”

Kai looked like he might laugh. “I have to  _babysit_  him?!”

Jongin rolled his eyes. “He’s my guest. And he can stay here for as long as he want. Just don’t bother him.”

“Oh.” His gaze and smirk darted over to Sehun and they rested on Sehun’s face as Sehun’s felt blood rush to his cheeks. He was one hundred per cent certain that Kai was thinking about the kiss in the forest. “I think he and I both know that  _I_ won’t be the one bothering the other here.”

His eyes were fluorescing with something like… lust. Sehun felt his throat tighten. He doubted that Kai had told Jongin about the kiss last night and he probably never will tell since he could use this to threaten Sehun from time to time because he was in fact that sort of a jerk.

“I won’t be long.” Jongin hissed as he shoved past Kai but was forced to a halt when Kai grabbed his arm.

“What’s going on?”

“What part of it’s none of your business don’t you understand?” Jongin hauled his arm free, glowering at his brother.

“Fine.” Kai shrugged. “I’ll figure it out myself. After all, Sehun’s gonna have so much fun with me.”

“He’s here under Adrian’s appeal. So I suggest you don’t get on Adrian’s bad side.”

“Jongin, I’m not the one who needs to worry about Adrian’s good and bad sides, am I?”

Jongin looked flabbergasted for a moment before he shook his head and hurried away from there without even sparing Sehun a glance. The next thing Sehun heard was the front door slamming shut. The sun was already up outside and the mist was gone. Jongin’s room was neat. Neater than Sehun had expected. There weren’t any books other than the school textbooks and notebooks on the shelf. His desk was also tidy and so was his entire bedroom.

“So what did I miss?” Kai asked, holding his position at the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest. “Why does my brother look flustered? And please don’t tell me you guys just had sex. Not likely, ‘cause you still smell like… me.” His smug smile was the most annoying thing ever.

Sehun didn’t make a retort as he pulled his coat off. He made his way to the wardrobe and pulled out one of Jongin’s shirts before heading towards the bathroom. That was when he came to a stop. He turned to face Kai with a grimace. “I smell like  _you_? Don’t you and Jongin smell the same?”

Kai burst out laughing, but Sehun did not find it one bit amusing. What if Jongin had sensed it?

“Naturally, yeah. But you have my perfume and aftershave all over you. And yes, Jongin would have picked up on that.”

 _Shit._ Sehun bit his tongue, feeling a little giddy. “He didn’t say anything about it.”

“I’m guessing neither did you? So you’re not gonna tell your boyfriend that you were snogging his brother a few hours ago? Maybe I’ll tell him when he comes back from his super secretive mission. What is he up to, Sehun?”

“You think you can blackmail me to tell you shit?”

Kai shrugged. “Fine. Fine. Go ahead, your majesty. Take your shower so that you can wash all of my scent off of you.”

“That’s not the reason I’m gonna take a shower.”

“If you insist. Wait, do Vampires shower? I mean I thought they were like self-cleaning ovens.”

Sehun shook his head, groaning as he entered the bathroom. This was going to be a long day.

When he exited the bathroom, all clad in Jongin’s blue shirt and boxers after taking a well-deserved shower, he found Kai sitting on the edge of Jongin’s bed, fiddling with his phone, slouching forward with his elbows on his lap and he looked up at Sehun with a sort of nonchalance which quickly changed into an alarming expression. He stopped moving at once as his eyes landed on Sehun’s exposed milky-white thighs. His brows lightly crumpled into a scowl, lips pursed and hands frozen around the phone as he stared at Sehun’s thighs.  _Pervert._

Sehun ruffled his hair at the back with the towel he found in the bathroom which had Jongin’s scent etched all over it and plodded over to the wardrobe to find some pants to wear. As he crossed Kai, Kai’s eyes followed his thighs and Sehun almost chuckled at the guy’s incapability to hold his reactions back.

“Do you have something to say to me or are you still here to irritate me?” Sehun asked, appearing to be casually calm as he opened the wardrobe.

Kai didn’t answer and much to Sehun’s surprise, he got up and left the room.

 

 

 

He normally never minded about other people’s stuffs, but right now, in Jongin’s room, in this house, Sehun was tempted to look around. He was definitely amused by how much he had affected Jongin that despite being a Vampire, he was allowed to stay in the First Alpha’s house under the protection of his brother. However, Sehun was failing his father. He was failing the Count. It was obvious that no matter what, he would not be able to destroy Jongin. But he could destroy Kai. And Jongin already said that he will leave with Sehun if he had to. Adrian was leaving town as well. So the only person that was obstructing everything was Kai.

Gazing through the window, Sehun stared at the evenfall outside and the darkening sky. He had been stuck in this room for an entire day and he was quite taken aback at the fact that Kai had not bothered him at all. There was absolutely no way that he could hear from Jongin or Adrian. All that he could do was hope that things had not gone wrong.

Switching his phone on, he leaned back against the bed’s headboard and the first thing he noticed was the missed calls. Blinking blankly at the 34 missed calls from Luhan, Sehun sat upright, swinging his legs over the end of the bed and dialled for Luhan. “Lu—”

“Sehun…” Luhan’s voice was dry and shaky on the other end of the line. “S-Sehun…”

“Luhan, what’s wrong?”

“This is what happens when you make friends, puppet.” This voice, Sehun knew all too well. The dread crept over him like an icy chill, numbing his brain. In this frozen state his mind offered him only one thought.  _His father._ “I will give you and your friend thirty minutes. Come to where you found me last night. Don’t make me wait for too long. And this time, don’t bring your dog friends.”

The call ended. Fear crept down his spine like a careful spider leaving a trail of silk and his stomach was full of lead, his feet were set in concrete, his mind was worryingly empty. His father would not stop at one until he had Sehun.

He buried his face in his hands, grinding his teeth so hard that blood began to pound in his temples. That was it. There was nothing more to do.

Pulling his sneakers and coat on, Sehun raced down the stairs and staggered to a stop when he found Kai on the couch with his legs spread wide on the coffee table and his shirt unbuttoned with beads of sweat trickling down his caramel chest and abs. His eyes were glued to the TV and he was singing along to the song even if he looked like he had just run a marathon. His eyes slowly shifted over to Sehun who stood frozen at the bottom of the stairs. “The biggest word I ever heard and this is how it goes, oh supercalifragilisticexpialidocious even though the sound of it is something quite atrocious.” His voice was low as he sang, staring at Sehun.

“Are you watching Mary Poppins?” Sehun questioned. He was not sure which appalled him more. The fact that he was about to drive himself into the hands of his murderous father or Kai was watching Mary Poppins, looking like he had just masturbated. No matter what, he had look chill now. “Did you just take a wank or something?”

“It’s the heat.” Kai muttered as if he were uninterested in entertaining Sehun and returned his attention back to the TV.

“It’s not that hot.” he said, stealthily making his way towards the front door. He should have just escaped through the window upstairs.

“Where’re you going?”

“That’s—”

“None of my business? Fine. Fuck off.”

Sehun bit on the inside of his cheek and quickly hurried out the door before Kai could stall him further, or worse, interrogate him. Sehun didn’t stop until he was in his car. His head was spinning and he felt like he might choke on his own blood.

 

 

 

By the time he reached the mountains Kai had brought him to last night, the sky was a grey blanket and the place was silvered and transformed by the light of the moon, which, at the full, hung like a great luminous pearl on the radiant breast of heaven. Clutching the coat, Sehun exited the car and wove his way into the forest at the floor of the mountain.

His ears became sharper and his mind paranoid, every snap of a twig was a predator worse than a Vampire, even if it were a fawn. For each aroma his brain jumped to the most fearsome thing it could be and his body prepared for flight, fright or freeze. If only the Count were here…

Sehun felt like something was clutching at his throat as he struggled to slowly climb up the mountain, past the trees and roots, following the trail of scent which Kai and he had left. When he reached the spot from last night, his heart sank deeper into his stomach. He could not sense either Luhan or his father’s scent. Anxiety and terror clawed him at the back of his neck as he looked around.

And then came the wave of sickening scent.

“Eeny meeny miny moe.” His father chimed behind him and Sehun slowly turned around. There was nothing different about the man since the last time Sehun had seen him. His salt and pepper hair was still long, standing right above his shoulders. Under the black coat, Sehun knew the man held the stake which had been hungering for Sehun’s heart. “We finally meet.”

Sehun gulped, taking a step back. “Where is he?”

“Let’s talk about us first, shall we?” he pulled the black stake out and fiddled with its point, smirking at Sehun. “Where have you been running to, you bastard?”

“Bastard? Last time I checked, I was  _yours_.”

“Ah. Is that what you still believe, you whoreson?”

“We both know which one of my parents was the whore.”

The smirk on his father’s face faltered and was replaced by a monstrous glare as he tilted his head to the side, staring at Sehun. “You cannot run from me anymore. It took me so many years to find you. And now, there’s no one to save you.”

“You’re forgetting that we’re both the Count’s heirs. You and I share the same strength.” He took another step back.

“Of course. Only that I’m more motivated than you are.” Without a warning, he sprung forward and Sehun turned on his heel, jolting away from there with the speed of a lightning bolt through the dense trees. His agile movement was far too slow. Behind him, he could sense his father closing in, grunting in exasperation. “Don’t think you can run from me again!”

Sehun ran through a tree accidently and was slowed down when the tree exploded into smithereens before he sprinted again. His father, leaping like a panther, landed on his back. Dropping abruptly, Sehun executed a somersault, shook himself free and rose only to butt his head into the stomach of his father with his fangs pierced out and eyes sharper than ever. Plunging his fist into the man’s face he gave him a hard stomp on the chest before breaking into a sprint deeper into the woods. It didn’t hold his father off for longer than three seconds.

The next thing he felt was the sharp, merciless struck on the back of his shoulder when the stake penetrated through it, sending Sehun straight to the ground. A cry escaped Sehun’s mouth with his eyes brewing tears with the black stake completely pierced through his left shoulder. That was it…

Sehun turned on his back and scooted back as his father edged closer and he almost forced himself to his feet before the ferocious black-silver beast emerged from the blinding darkness of the trees and lunged itself onto his father. Every silence in the mountain was broken by its ear-piercing growl and bark as it pounced Sehun’s father. Completely paralyzed, Sehun gaped at the scene before him as the beast brawled with his father, all claws and fangs. It wasn’t long before Sehun recognized the scent.

Kai.

He looked nothing like an ordinary wolf. His black fur was tinted with greyish silver and his eyes were as red as blood, twice the size of Adrian’s wolf form. He was a monster.

Sehun gasped and pushed himself further away with his father struggling to keep up with Kai’s attacks. His arm struck the Berserker once, sending him flying before he was slammed against a tree. But it didn’t stop Kai even for a second. He lurched forward again, twice as beastly, twice as monstrous. He sprung onto Sehun’s father and his blood-curdling teeth slashed the Vampire’s arm. That was when Sehun’s father clawed Kai in the ribs before ripping at the neck. Kai whimpered a little with his a side of his neck slit open and blood oozing out of, but when he growled again, it deafened Sehun.

Sehun pulled the stake out and forced himself up before hurling the stake directly at his father’s back when he struck the chance.

“Argh!” his father’s cry ruffled the still trees and he broke into a sprint. The Berserker didn’t succumb. Instead, Kai chased after him with a monstrous ferocity which had Sehun trembling.

“Kai! Don’t!” he called after him but he was long gone in the trees. Without even thinking twice, Sehun raced after them.

For a long moment, Sehun was lost in the darkness of the mountain, unable to track Kai since his scent was all over the place. His shoulder was bleeding in agony but it was healing quicker than Kai would be healing from the slash on his neck. Shit. This was all because of Sehun. Kai was here for him. “Kai?!” he yelled, jolting through the forest.

He drew to a stand when he heard the quiet whimpering from afar. He started in the direction of the silent cry and when he found Kai on the forest’s floor, curled into a ball with one hand clutching the fern, Sehun’s entire body almost crumbled. He had turned back into his human form again and he was moaning in pain, twitching and shuddering with blood all over his neck and ribs, eyes clutched tight.

“Fuck.” Sehun crashed to his knees next to Kai and hesitated to touch the laceration on his neck. It was deep enough to snap the bones. “Kai?! Shit.” He was going to do something reckless. Biting his lip for a moment, he stared at Kai cry in an agonizing pain. He picked Kai’s head up and cradled it in one arm, trying to think of a way to reduce the pain, but he was stumped. “Fuck, come on, Kai!”

Kai gasped out before clenching his eyes and teeth and made a wailing noise, suppressing a cry by his gritted teeth. He choked on his breath as he buried his face into Sehun’s stomach, groaning and crying in pain. Sehun probed the hanging flesh on his neck and ribs as his own eyes teared up.

* * *

 

An overwhelming tide of emotions owned him, thrusting against him like an invisible gale, attempting to reverse his steps back as he hurried his way up the stairs of his very much ruined house, to the bedroom with Kai laying limp and trembling in his arms, wrapped in Sehun’s coat. The nearest place from the mountains was Sehun’s house and Jongin and the pack must be roaming around this area as well. For a very stupid moment, Sehun even considered bringing Kai to a hospital but that would bring out too much trouble. Dread had his stomach locked up tight, nothing getting in or out. Confusion and anxiety set his face like rigor mortis, his teeth clenched tight together. Kai was nowhere near heavy in his arms, but every part of Sehun’s body felt like it was supporting a mountain. A cold, silently crying in pain, helpless, very vulnerable mountain that had been felled because of and for Sehun. A cold spider set on Sehun’s icy chill heart and spread its legs on it, clutching it with murderous repentance and guilt. The rambunctious blaring of the wolf’s growl and Vampire’s screech still rang in the back of Sehun’s mind, jarring him out of his sense every single passing second. All his life, he had had seen and experienced aggression, pain, abuse first hand. It was, however, the first time he had seen someone else go through such a pain for him and it was the last man Sehun would have predicted. Kai taking the bullet for Sehun was not something he would have prognosticated.

His bed was made and neatened. Luhan must have been here before Sehun’s father could have found him. Carefully placing Kai down on the bed, Sehun pulled the covers over Kai’s shivering body and jolted to the bathroom before returning with a couple of towels in the blink of an eye. His stomach only crumpled to the pit when he saw the blood that had already been soaked by the pillow. He could stitch Kai’s wounds up, but that would only put him through more pain. And it was not like Sehun had stitching kits or morphine stored in his house since a Vampire had no need for them. Dropping the towels onto the bed, he stared at the blood on his hands and for the very first time, he was shaking because of blood. Kai’s blood.

Holding the towel to the side of Kai’s neck, Sehun let the blood soak the towel as stared at Kai’s tremoring and sweaty body. Kai had both his eyes and jaw clenched hard as he silently moaned in pain. He must half conscious. The bleeding was not ceasing even a little. Kai was not recovering at all. Not even a smidge. Sehun wiped his own face and placed a knee on the bed to swipe the wet hair out of Kai’s sweat covered forehead. He stroked Kai’s forehead and head, staring at Kai’s parted lips that were struggling to gasp in air. Kai’s forehead was burning against Sehun’s wintry palm. “Kai? Come on. You should have healed at least internally by now.” He muttered sotto voce, swallowing back the sob that began to rise. He pulled the towel away when it had been completely bathed in blood. “Fuck.”

Although Werewolves took a longer time to heal from an injury, they probably didn’t take this long.

He was not healing.

Sehun scurried off the bed and gaped at Kai for a moment. Kai’s heaving chest was beginning to slow down and Kai’s body had stopped shivering. Wolfsbane.  _Shit, how could I have forgotten about that?!_  His father was hiding his scent with Wolfsbane. It would be explainable that he had his nails laced with Wolfsbane.

“Kai!” Sehun climbed onto the bed and knelt on both sides of Kai before leaning down and grabbed Kai’s face. “Hey!” He wasn’t responding. Sehun straightened up and clenched his fists before releasing them. He had thought about it earlier but he didn’t find it necessary since Kai would be able to heal on his own. “Screw this.” This was by far the most reckless and the stupidest thing Sehun could have done, but he can deal with the consequences later. Right now, he was not going to let Kai die. He was not going to let the only man who had stood up against his father since the day he was born die.

Without thinking further, Sehun’s fangs pierced through the inside of his wrist and he pressed the wrist against Kai’s lips.

“Hey, hey, Kai? Please. Drink it!” he curled his hand around the back of Kai’s neck and pressed his wrist harder into his mouth. His wrist healed before even a drop managed into Kai’s mouth. “Fuck! Kai! Wake the fuck up!” Sehun’s eyes wandered to the slashes at the ribs through which the bones were visible and he succumbed completely. Biting his wrist again, Sehun sucked in a mouthful of blood before bowing down. With his hand cupped around Kai’s nape, fingers grazing Kai’s hair, Sehun pressed their lips together. A jolt was sent through his body as he let the metallic liquid which had numbed Sehun’s tongue over the decades slide into Kai’s mouth, past his hot lips. Clutching at Kai’s hair at the nape, Sehun pushed his mouth harder against Kai’s, parting Kai’s lips with his tongue.

He pulled up straight with both of their lips stained with blood and Sehun stared at Kai with his throat dry as sand. He was not even sure if his blood would help neutralize the Wolfsbane but the Count and his heirs’ blood was the only thing that heal all Vampires, Werewolves and humans whereas the common Vampires could only use their blood to heal mortals.

 _Come on. Come on. Come on._ Sehun internally chanted, watching Kai’s unmoving body. He splayed his hand on Kai’s chest and felt Kai’s heart thump quietly under his palms. It was slowly stabilizing. “God.” Sehun exhaled a heavy sigh, dragging his palms down Kai’s chest and got off him, then the bed. Scrubbing his face, Sehun looked around him with his head falling heavy. He had not fed on blood for more than a day and it was wearing him down. Everything looked hazy to his eyes. The shirt was sticking to his shoulder, front and back with dried blood where the stake had penetrated. He glanced back at Kai who was beginning to breathe heavy again. It was working. His blood was healing him. It was neutralizing the Wolfsbane.

“Kai?”

No response.

Sehun ran back to the bathroom and grabbed the only first aid kit Luhan had stored in case of a human visit. Once Kai’s neck and rib wounds were sloppily covered with bandages, he leaned back against the edge of the desk and kept his eyes fixed on Kai.

He still had to find Luhan but he was not going to leave Kai without knowing for sure that he was going to be all right. Sehun pulled his phone out when the idea struck him. He withdrew himself to the balcony and dialled for ‘Nightwalkers’. When the called was answered, he quickly asked for Donna.

“Yeah.” She hissed sourly.

“Donna.” Sehun rasped.

“Porcelain? Whoa. Fancy you calling me on this line.” She chortled.

“I need your help. My friend, Luhan, Viw knows him. He’s gone missing.”

“Hey, hey. Slow down, porcelain. We’re not exactly Sherlock Holmes to solve your mysteries.”

“Please. I’ll owe you one if you can help me with this, please. The last I heard from him was… from the Westday Mountains.”

Donna was silent for a moment before she heaved a sigh. “Fine. Does Viw know him?”

“Yes. I’m very sure.”

“I’ll tell him. But I won’t promise anything.”

“You have to help me with this, Donna. Please. Viw said that he won’t let anything happen to any of the Vampires in this town.”

“All right, all right. I’ll let you know what Viw says. Hold on.”

Sehun gritted his teeth, gazing into the empty night sky. It was unlikely that his father would come after him again tonight. He was just as wounded by Kai when he last saw him. Sehun closed his eyes momentarily, recalling how murderous and monstrous Kai’s Berserker form was. The black-silver fur on the other hand was beguiling. He looked back at Kai’s wrecked body on the bed and stared at him.

“Sehun.” Donna’s voice pulled Sehun’s attention away from the vulnerable Kai again.

“Yes.”

“He’s sending a search party for him. He says that it’s the least he could do for you after last time whatever that means.”

“Thank him for me. And thank you, Donna.”

“Wow. Is this a serious matter?”

“There’s a murderer out there. I’m just concerned.”

“Hmm.”

“Thanks.” Sehun muttered and ended the call when he heard Kai moaning. He hurried back into the bedroom and watched Kai stir. “Jesus Christ, you son of a gun.” He let out exasperatedly in great relief and dropped to the floor before lying down on the floor which was colder than his back. He threw his arm over his forehead and laid there with an immense weight on his chest.

 

 

 

It felt surreal. Everything that had happened three hours ago was like a nightmare. In this house full of silence and tranquillity and loneliness, there was now a dread. A fear that crept up every wall. A fear that had permanently stayed in the walls of Sehun’s heart since the days of his childhood. The days where he was nothing but a boy who dug through scraps and leftovers of the villagers to feed his mother, sister and himself. The days where he was nothing but a child who was unloved by his father, soon unloved by his mother. The days where he yearned to get out of that Hell. The days where he yearned for love. Sehun crumpled the blood bag once the blood had filled the glass and he slumped back against the kitchen counter, staring out the window with a painful sore in his heart. They said that time healed everything. Not even six decades could heal Sehun. The trauma he had gone through all those years of his childhood had been the sole reason why he could never fight and face his father even if now they were equal in strength. Perhaps not equal in experience.

Taking a sip of the blood which hit his stomach like an iron bar, Sehun almost moaned in ease and satisfaction. The satisfaction ran up his veins, striking each of them with vigour and vitality. He threw his head back, eyes closed. Pulling his phone out, he tried for Jongin again but to no avail.

Emptying the glass, Sehun rinsed his mouth at the sink before heading back upstairs to check on Kai who was asleep when he had left him almost an hour ago. Sehun had managed to clear and reset most of the hallway and living area except for the broken glass walls. The strong smell of Kai’s blood still circulated the air in the house. When he entered the room, Sehun stopped to stare at Kai. The weight on his chest got heavier as the cold spider stretched its legs further, engulfing Sehun’s heart. He silently walked over to the bedside and peeled the bandage off Kai’s neck. It had completely healed. Sehun clenched his eyes lightly and gulped in repose. There was not even a scar beneath all the dried blood. Sehun stealthily dragged his fingertips along the vein of Kai’s neck, brushing the flaky dried blood. Just when he was about to retrieve his hand, a harsh clutch on his wrist stood Sehun still. He wide-eyed Kai whose own eyes fluttered open. They looked confused for a moment before they settled on Sehun. Kai’s lips parted to say something but only a gush of breath escaped before he closed his eyes again, releasing Sehun’s wrist.

“What… happened?” he asked in a husky, rough voice which threw Sehun off a little.

“You… don’t remember?”

“I remember… the… mountains.” Kai swallowed hard, pushing himself upright to sit. Sehun grabbed the water bottle from the bedside table and handed it to Kai. Accepting it politely, Kai drained the entire bottle and Sehun watched the several beads of water which trickled down Kai’s throat, then chest before they stopped at the bottom of his abs. “Why am I here? This is your room.” He sounded like he was accusing.

“Yeah. It’s the closest. You were hurt. Pretty bad.” Sehun muttered, retreating to sit on the edge of the desk.

“That leech.” Kai suddenly perked up. “ _What_ is he? I’ve never… thought that there could be a Vampire as strong as him. He was… just as strong as my wolf form. He couldn’t have gotten far. I bit him. He probably… would die.”

Sehun licked his lips. No. He wasn’t going to die.

“Who was he?” Kai questioned and Sehun remained silent. “Sehun?” he was scowling now. Sehun felt his heart swell as he shifted his gaze from Kai’s eyes.

“Why?” the word came out as a whisper and Kai didn’t respond as he waited for more than just ‘why’. Sehun rubbed the back of his neck and asked, “How did you… No. Why would you… You shouldn’t have poked your nose into my business.”

Kai blankly stared at Sehun in something like disbelief. “What?”

“It’s been an extremely long night, Kai. We both need some… space and rest. You can leave if you want. Or shower.” He said with the weight on his chest growing even heavier. What was this feeling? Why couldn’t he even look straight into Kai’s eyes anymore? Sehun quickly started past Kai before his forearm was grabbed.

“Is that… all that you’re going to say?” Kai’s eyes were both exhausted and alert, filled with uncertainty and disappointment.

“Let go, Kai.” Sehun spat with his throat choked by a sob. If Kai were expecting a thank you, Sehun wasn’t sure how he was going to present that. The old boy, the young child who longed for someone to save him from his father was there now, standing in this room, wanting Kai to just leave him alone. Kai’s hand loosened around Sehun’s forearm. He didn’t wait for a reply as he hurried out of the bedroom and into the library.

Slamming the door shut, Sehun covered his mouth with his hands and finally gave in to the tears. He didn’t know what he was crying for. Or why. All that he did know was that he wanted this night to be over. For Kai to just leave before he can manage to get Sehun to talk. He had numbed himself over the years and all of his walls had been demolished in one night.

_“I can take you away from this Hell. Would you want to take my hand and follow me, lad?”_

_“Yes.”_

That day, Sehun had said that one word which saved him a lifetime of Hell. Now Hell was back.

He heard a door being opened and closed. Wiping the tears, Sehun stepped out of the library and headed back to the bedroom. The bed was empty and the bathroom’s light was turned on. It was way past midnight.

Sehun ripped the covers off the mattress before yanking the mattress itself out of the bedframe. Along with the coat he had used to cover Kai earlier, he hauled the mattress and its bloodied covers down the stairs before tossing them onto the porch to be burned later. Racing back upstairs in a second, he grabbed the spare mattress from the guest room. When he returned to his bedroom, he hurled the mattress into the bedframe with a rivulet of tear rolling down his cheek and he didn’t bother to wipe it away as he scavenged the storage closet for spare sheets as if making his bed were the priority right now. He wasn’t weak. He wasn’t weak. He had been strong and numb and emotionless all these years. He wasn’t going to fall apart now.

As he tried to make the bed with more crystal tears betraying his eyes, his veins tightened and he finally balled his hands into fists before straightening up and gave the bed a hard stomp at the side of its frame. “Eurghh!” he helplessly groaned, blinking his blurred eyes with his eyelashes clumped together, glued by the tears. The bathroom’s door opened behind him and Sehun spun around to face Kai who stood there, staring at Sehun with a scowl etched on his brows. Sehun stared back, only twice as pathetic with his eyes probably reddened and lips quivering. Kai was healed completely and now, he was dripping wet, head to toe, from the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist. Kai slowly stepped forward and Sehun held his ground.

Without a word, Kai’s wet hands came up to Sehun’s face and he clasped the sides of it. Sehun opened his mouth to protest but was hushed by Kai’s quiet, “Shh.”

* * *

 

As Kai leaned forward Sehun’s pulse raced. The fragrance of soap and shampoo which Sehun was accustomed smelled different on Kai, mingled with the Kai’s own scent. It was all too overpowering, strong and… euphoric. Sehun inhaled every bit of the scent he could manage, keeping his eyes on Kai’s. A teardrop rolled down Sehun’s cheek, but with one swift slide of Kai’s thumb, it was brushed out of the way. Looking into Kai’s eyes Sehun saw deep pools of black that displayed his soul. He slowly lowered his gaze to the rivulets of water trickling down Kai’s hard toned chest and swallowed. He had expected Kai to give him a hard time, looking for an explanation for everything that had happened tonight. But instead, Kai was… comforting him. He had allowed Sehun the space he asked for. And all that Sehun wanted to do now was lean into Kai’s chest and cry his heart out. Vampires had the privilege to shut down their humanity but once they decided to let the pain of their past conquer them, everything crashed down at once. Sehun had let his demons of the past engulf him tonight, spreading the Cold Spider on his heart. All the indestructible walls he had built for years were brought down tonight.

The tears flowed unchecked down his cheeks and dripped from his chin. He was too sad to cry out or wail, he just stood there as still as a statue while the magnitude of his misery swept over him. For once again he was lost in the torrid vortex of the moment. It was a moment that carried him forwards until only death could release him from its clutches. He was forever tormented by a past that could not be undone. He unconsciously brought his hands to Kai’s damp, yet warm chest with tears bathing his cheeks. Then Kai leaned closer. His lips touched Sehun’s cheek. Time stopped. A sob caught in Sehun’s throat as Kai let one of his hands slide down from Sehun’s face, trailing along Sehun’s arm before he slid it into Sehun’s palm. Their fingers locked together similar to puzzle pieces. As the soft skin of his mouth left the side of Sehun’s face, the exact spot where they had come into contact burned and tingled. A fire raced through him as his cheeks painted themselves rose red. Kai pulled away silently, but their eyes locked, having a private conversation of their own. When Kai had planted the kiss there, Sehun felt the warmth spread through his limbs and his mind felt a pleasant buzz. Every good thing seemed possible, likely even. And then Sehun knew he had found what he’d been looking for tonight. Comfort. Comfort in the hands of the man who daringly stood up for him before his father. The sort of person Sehun had been praying every single day when he was nothing but a small child—a man to save him, to show his father that Sehun too could be loved and that someone would stick up for him. He did not care even if it were Kai. He was way too tired to care anymore.

Curling his arms around Kai’s waist first, he snaked them along Kai’s shoulder blades before hooking his hands onto the shoulders as he leaned in and pressed his face into the front of Kai’s shoulder. The second he felt Kai’s arms swirl around his neck, the tears gushed out his eyes once again. He needed to thank Kai. He needed to tell Kai about how long he had been waiting for someone to protect him. And Kai had even risked his own life. Weeping into Kai’s shoulder, Sehun inhaled the scent of Kai’s skin again. Suddenly, the Werewolf scent was comforting and assuaging. He felt safe. He felt safer than when he was in his mother’s arms. He was indeed physical strong. But mentally, Sehun was too vulnerable. And tonight, Kai got to see the most vulnerable side of him.

 

 

 

Those black-glass eyes rimmed with thick, long, dark lashes that brushed Kai’s cheeks every time he closed his eyes, seemed to bore into Sehun every time he looked into them and nearly lost himself. Suffering, loneliness, longing, desire; his eyes held all those deep seated emotions and many more. Sehun could never really read Kai through the emotions that danced like fire, licking at the walls of black-glass. However, sometimes, like today, the fire dwindled down to smouldering ember and even he, who had gotten to know the Kai who cared, could not tell what emotions were soaring just beyond those walls. Sehun wanted to know what Kai was thinking. They silently laid on the bed, each on the furthest end of the bed, staring into each other. Kai was probably waiting for Sehun to stop crying, but now that he had, none of them dared the other to speak. Kai’s eyes were bottomless pools of darkness and there was something solemn swimming in his eyes. Their stunning, endless stretch of midnight sky held a truth that his face could not hide. The despairing chill and confusion that they conveyed made Sehun feel heartbroken. He looked away, casting his gaze low, half lidding his eyes; he couldn’t bear it. What was usually strength, now showed weakness.

He deserved an explanation. Before a thank you.

“My father.” Sehun’s voice came out raspy and hoarse, but in a whisper. Kai blinked. “He’s… my father… Not my… foster father. I live with my foster father now. Who had turned me. That man, in the woods, is my  _real_  father.” He kept his eyes low, not wanting to see Kai’s reaction anymore. “Please don’t ask me anything more.”

Kai didn’t.

Sehun licked his lips and looked up at him. “I was from a village. Small town.” He muttered. “There, you don’t have much option but to… strive. My father… he spent everything that my mom earned for himself. My mother was… driven half insane. She… doesn’t say more than two words to me a day. And my father… he doesn’t spare me without at least five kicks a day.” He snickered, smiling but with tears brewing in his eyes. “I didn’t… do anything. I was… eleven. And one day, he came home… He wanted to hit my sister. I stopped him. And… he burned me with a fire iron and let me starve for… almost two days.” Sehun lifted his shirt enough to reveal the burn scar on the left side of his lower abdomen. Kai scowled at it before bringing his hand to the scar. His fingertips lightly brushed it, making Sehun’s stomach churn in both refusal and acceptance. Pulling his shirt back down, Sehun buried the side of his face deeper into the pillow. “He said that I was unwanted. Unloved. Useless.”

“I know how that feels.” Kai whispered and Sehun paused to stare at him. “To be not… chosen by anyone you care for.”

Sehun pursed his lips, eyes travelling down Kai’s sternum and abs. “I always wanted a father who would care for me. I cared for him. Then, one day, came this man who offered to turn me into a Vampire. That was the part of the bargain that had my interest. It was the part where he promised to take me away…. That night, something… happened. I don’t know… I can’t remember. I always have these… holes in my memories.”

“Did you forget?”

“It’s been so many years. But I don’t think I would forget anything that’s important. And that night was… important. I was… mad… sad… on the verge killing myself when Vance came.”

“Vance. Your foster father.”

“Yes. And again, I don’t remember. My father had Vance’s blood in his system because… I wanted Vance to heal him. He… was… injured.” Recalling memories that he had been trying so hard to forget was proving to be more difficult than he would have liked. “He died with Vampire blood in his system.”

Kai was silent for a moment with his brows furrowed together. “I’ve never fought any Vampire that strong. I mean you’re pretty strong, too. But in my wolf form… I can’t believe that he was  _that_  strong.”

“He had Wolfsbane on him.”

“Hm. Yeah. Probably that’s why.” Kai mumbled. “Tell me more.”

“Well, he died and—”

“No. About you. About… that little Sehun.”

Sehun felt his heart clench.  _That little Sehun_ was here now.  _That little Sehun_ was here because of Kai. “The forest was my escape.” A small grin formed on Sehun’s lips and Kai mimicked it. “It feels like I had a friend. I just… don’t think he existed. But there was someone. Maybe I forgot. No, I definitely forgot. I just… go around. Playing. Making the most of the day before I had to return home only to go back to the streets and beg for food when my father decides to starve the family. I’d go home… hoping to see my sister smile… hoping that my mother would have died so that she can be put out of her misery.” He closed his eyes. “My father got rid of every friend that I made. I never experienced love.”

“Neither have I.”

Sehun let out a breath of laughter. “Jongin loves you. Your parents love you. I’m pretty sure there are some people who love you even if the majority hates you.”

Kai smirked but it quickly faltered as he snaked an arm around Sehun’s waist before slowly pulling him closer. “Not that kinda love.”

“Kai.” Sehun pressed a palm onto Kai’s chest to create some distance.

“How much blunter can I be, Sehun? After tonight, it should be pretty obvious.”

“What should be pretty obvious?”

“Don’t play coy.”

“Kai—”

“I want you, Sehun. How many times should I tell you that?” he cupped Sehun’s cheek, staring into his eyes. “And I’d go through every bit of what I went through tonight again if it were for you.”

Before Sehun could respond, his phone vibrated in his pocket and he quickly pulled away from Kai to answer the call. “Jongin?!” he gasped.

“Where the hell are you, Sehun?!” Jongin rasped on the other end.

“I’m… I’m at my place.”

“What? What are you doing there?!”

“Don’t worry. Kai’s here with me. We’ll come back now.”

As soon as he ended the call, he turned to face Kai who had already gotten out of the bed. He fit just right in the sweatpants that Sehun had lent him, but it didn’t look like he needed a shirt. “Do you love Jongin?” he asked, facing Sehun again.

Rising to his feet, Sehun let out a sigh. “How many times are you gonna ask that, Kai?”

Kai shook his head. “Forget about it. I’m just… for a moment there, I thought that… maybe…”

“Maybe what?”

He stared vacantly at Sehun for a minute. “Maybe it will be okay if I kiss you. Maybe this time, you would have kissed me back with sincerity. Do you… have any idea how… difficult it is for me? Every time you reject me… A part of me just…” he was struggling to get the words out. “I guess that’s how you feel when you’re… hopelessly…” he trailed off without finishing.

“Kai. There’s a chance for us to be friends now. I don’t… I don’t feel that way towards you.”

“I’m not a monster, Sehun. I’m not like your father.”

“I didn’t say you are. But this… isn’t about you.”

“No. I can clearly see that.” He sighed. “We should go.” He started past Sehun to get to the door before Sehun grabbed his hand.

“I don’t want us to hurt each other anymore, Kai.”

“Yeah. You’re gonna be the only one hurting me here, Sehun. But you don’t care. ‘Cause you’re in love with Jongin.” He spat and pulled his hand free before storming out of the bedroom, leaving Sehun dumbfounded and utterly confused with what he should do now.

And then, he turned on his heel and zoomed after Kai. Catching his arm right when Kai reached the mid of the staircase, Sehun curled his hand around Kai’s neck. “I’m asking you now. Wholeheartedly. And I  _want_  you to do this.” His voice did not pass a whisper, panting a little. “All my life, I’ve wanted someone to… to… be there… And you… from the moment I’ve met you… you’re always there. Kai…”

“Don’t.” Kai pulled Sehun’s hand off of his neck. “Don’t ask me to kiss you just because you want to thank me for tonight, Sehun. I don’t want you to do that for me. Just remember that… that monster, that  _beast_ you saw at the mountains  _is_ the real me. I will be never be Jongin. But I can give you something that he will never be able to give you, Sehun. Just take tonight into your debt. We’ll settle the score in some other way. Besides, it’s always fun having you owe me something.” He smiled an insincere smile before proceeding down the stairs.

* * *

The second Kai got into the house, Jongin leapt down the stairs before coming to a halt in front of his brother. For a moment, Jongin did nothing but breathlessly gape at Kai’s shirtless body before his eyes flitted over to Sehun who quietly stood behind Kai. Sehun glanced over at Adrian and Kyungsoo who were seated on the couch. All three of them looked like they had been drained of their energy.

Jongin’s eyebrows furrowed into frown as his gaze bounced from Sehun to Kai and vice versa. “Oh, it’s not what you think.” Kai groaned, shoving past Jongin to get to Adrian who rose to his full height. “Did you get him?”

Adrian blinked, glancing over at Jongin. “You told him?!” Jongin gasped, facing Sehun.

“Well, it’s not only you guys who have had an adventurous night.” Kai scoffed before Jongin could force Sehun to talk.

“What the fuck happened?” Jongin snapped, grabbing Kai’s arm to turn him around. “You transformed tonight?! I felt it, Kai. I always do. And you disconnected our connection, didn’t you?! Where the heck were you?!”

A small smirk formed on Kai’s lips as he clasped a hand on Jongin’s shoulder. “Is that concern or...”

Exasperated, Jongin turned to Sehun. “Where were you?”

“We’ll explain everything to you, Jongin. Calm down.” Sehun muttered as he extended a hand to hold Jongin’s but withdrew it when Kai interrupted by hauling Jongin’s arm to have him face him.

All of the sudden, Kai’s jaw was tight and his biceps were flexed as he crushed Jongin’s arm. “Next time, you fucking tell me if you’re going on a suicide mission, understand?!”

“What are you talking about?” Jongin hissed, pulling his arm free with a ferocious force. “Wait… Were you… out looking for  _him_? Did you tell him everything, Sehun?!”

“Yeah. He did. I know just as much as you do, Jongin.” Kai answered again. “Maybe more. And I know that you would have had your head ripped off by that Vampire before you could have gotten your tiny claw on him.” he spat through his gritted teeth.

Jongin raised a brow. “I had it under control. You shouldn’t have fucking interfered! Who’s the First Alpha here, huh?!”

“Well, the First Fucking Alpha forgot to inform his strongest pack member that he was going on a hunt to track down a Vampire who had Wolfsbane. Are you out of your pissed mind?! I’m telling you that you would have stood no chance whatsoever against that bloodsucker. Even  _you_  didn’t think it’d be the best to tell me, Adrian?!”

Adrian shrugged. “It was the Alpha’s orders.”

“Alpha’s orders or because you want him to suck your balls?! Because I think we both know whose balls our little Alpha would love to suck.”

That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Adrian jerked forward with fisted hands but was held back by Kyungsoo and Sehun expected Adrian to flip the switch, but it was Jongin’s fist that slammed Kai’s face before Sehun lurched forward, throwing himself between the brothers and shoved Jongin back. “Stop!”

“If you were going to ask for his help, why the hell didn’t you tell me?!” Jongin yelled, grabbing Sehun’s shirt by the chest. This was not how Sehun expected things to turn out.

“I… I would have been dead if it weren’t for Kai.” Sehun muttered, completely dejected and disappointed. He should let Jongin and Kai quarrel. He should use this opportunity to get the brothers to completely turn against one another. But here he was, doing the complete opposite. For once, Sehun didn’t want Jongin to fight Kai.

_And Kai would have died to save me…_

Jongin stared at Sehun. His jaw went slack and his eyes glazed over blankly. “Wh-what?”

“I’ll tell you everything.” Sehun pressed his palms onto Jongin’s chest to reassure him. “Just… just calm down.”

“I was just…” Jongin sighed, rubbing his forehead. “I’m sorry.”

Sehun tried to smile, but he couldn’t. The dawn was already hinting the scintillating rays of the sun outside. And he was just far too mentally exhausted to bring himself to smile anymore.

“Are you… okay?” Jongin finally asked, cupping a side of Sehun’s face. Sehun curtly nodded, aware of Kai’s piercing gaze on the nape of his neck. That was when Adrian stormed out of the house without a word and Kyungsoo took his leave as well.

“Yeah, sure.” Kai scoffed. “Ask  _him_  if he’s okay while  _I_  was the one who had my neck almost ripped.” He stomped over to the stairs and stopped at the first step with a hand gripping the railing. “Unless he gets himself some Werewolf blood, he’s done for good.” He said without looking back at Jongin.

“You  _bit_  him?”

Kai didn’t reply as he started up the stairs, keeping his eyes on Sehun. Sehun wilted under Kai’s stare. It wasn’t just the cool black eyes, it was the furious, lusting rage of warmth behind them that did it. In the gap between Kai’s eyes and Sehun’s, a battle was fought. Kai constantly held Sehun’s gaze, but instead of an icy hostility, it was with the warmth of a lover. A burning, unconventional lover.

“Sehun?” Jongin’s voice snapped the line that connected Sehun’s gaze to Kai’s and he dropped his eyes to meet Jongin’s. “I’m really sorry that I…”

“No. No, it’s okay.” He flumped to sit on the couch and wiped his face with his bare palms which suddenly felt too coarse for his tender cheeks. Jongin settled on the armrest and they sat there in silence for a moment before Sehun broke it. “I received a call last night. After you left.”

By the time he was done narrating everything that had happened—of course he had to leave out the part where he so embarrassingly told Kai about his pathetic past and the part where Kai kissed his cheek, a kiss which meant way more than all the meaningless kisses that Sehun had had in his entire life—Jongin let out an audible breath, running his fingers through his hair. “Kai… did that… for you?”

“Shockers, right?” Sehun sniggered, but within, he cringed. “Don’t be… mad at him, Jongin. Not this time at least. He only interfered to help me.”

“I just flipped because… he disconnected me to him after he transformed.”

Sehun stared at him in confusion and Jongin heaved a sigh.

“Werewolves are always connected to their Alpha when they’re in their wolf form. Unfortunately, a Berserker can disconnect their bond with the Alpha. Kai never really… does that. But last night, after I realized he had turned, he cut me off. And he was with you. You can guess why I was frustrated.”

Sehun slowly nodded his head. “He was badly hurt. That’s why I had to bring him to my house to give him some time to heal.”

“I understand.” He rose to his feet. “If he’s bitten, then I suppose we can expect the best out of it, right?”

“I’m not sure, Jongin. He has influences. He might get some Werewolf blood.” In reality, his father was going to heal on his own after a day or two of Hell.

“Well, then, we’ll have to keep our eyes peeled. But he won’t come back anytime soon, I guess.”

“I guess.”

Jongin held a side of Sehun’s face and pulled it up before brushing their lips together. “I’m sorry.”

“Stop apologizing, Jongin. It’s okay.”

Jongin frowned, shaking his head. “I… have… something to tell you as well.”

“What is it?”

For a long moment, Jongin remained mum, frankly staring into Sehun’s eyes. “You look tired, Sehun. I’m… tired as well. We’ll do this some other time. Come on.”

“No.” Sehun shot up. “I have to leave.”

“What?”

“I have to go look for Luhan. I asked Viw to help.”

“Viw?” Jongin’s frown deepened. “You know him?”

“I live here now, Jongin. I ought to know some of my people, no?”

“Yeah… but…” he scratched the back of his neck and finally exhaled loudly. “All right. I guess knowing people like him would be helpful for you.”

Sehun doubted that Jongin was aware of Kai’s dominance over not only Viw but every other Vampire in the town. “Don’t worry, Jongin. No one’s gonna hurt anyone.”

“I’ll get some of the boys to look for your servant boy as well.”

Sehun bowed his head. “I’d appreciate it.”

Jongin smiled stiffly. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

“You should… talk to Kai. It’s not fair to him.”

Pursing his lips, Jongin lowering his head. As Sehun started past him, a sort of heaviness landed on his chest again. The Cold Spider suddenly seemed more apt than the millions of butterflies Jongin had once given him. Something told Sehun that there too many loose ends in his relationship with Jongin.

 

 

 

The club was almost empty in the morning and Sehun spotted Donna at the bar counter the moment he entered the venue. Donna spun around at once to meet Sehun with her cocky red grin. “Has there been any news about the boy?” Sehun rasped before he even reached her.

“I’m afraid none that I know of, porcelain.” She sighed.

“Where’s Viw?”

“Just because I agreed to help, it doesn’t mean you can waltz in here and name me as if I’m your friend.” Viw’s remark startled Sehun a little and he turned on his heel to face Viw who pinned him down with an odd glare. A couple of tight-shirted men stood on either sides of the man himself. “I sent some of my men out there for you, kid. And I’d do the same for any Vampire in this town but I hope you’re playing at something here.”

“Do I look like I’m playing at something?”

Viw scrutinized him for a moment. “I guess not. I contacted Luhan’s foster family and none of ‘em had seen him since last night. The last of his scent was picked up from the east mountains. They’re still looking. Do you think it’s the murderer? He hasn’t been onto any Vampires, though?”

“I’m not sure. But you all need to be careful. Some of the Werewolves agreed to help me look for Luhan.”

Viw’s eyes widened. “Did they? Does Kai know?”

“He should.”

“It must be pretty serious then.” His brows furrowed into a curious frown. “I’ll let you if we find more leads. The wolves would be able to track down Vampires faster, too.”

“Thank you. Thank you very much.” Sehun blurted out before brushing past Viw.

 

* * *

 

He stopped at the doorway and held onto the doorframe with his head hung low. Kai sat on the edge of his bed, slouching forward with his hands clasped together and elbows on his thighs. He smelled of fresh soap and musky aftershave. His faded pink hair was pushed up and sideway—unlike how he usually liked them, curtaining half of his eyes. A lightning struck in the background outside the window before a thunder followed, signalling the storm that was about to come. Kai still sat there, wearing a glowering expression, jaw locked and brows knitted.

“Kai.” Jongin called and swallowed when Kai slowly looked up at him. No. Scowled at him. Jongin hoped that Kai would understand him. How many people—especially Werewolves—would be calm if he came home to see both his boyfriend and brother who had been hitting on his boyfriend to be gone after realizing that his brother cut their connection? Kai had never done that even if he were the only one with the means of doing so in the pack. Jongin would never admit that  _it_  was more upsetting him than Sehun telling Kai about everything. “Are you expecting a sorry? This wouldn’t have happened in the first place if you hadn’t disconnected our bond when you turned.”

Kai jolted up with his hands tight as rocks. “Oh. I’m sorry because I didn’t want you in my head anymore, Jongin. But I’m sure you wouldn’t really like the idea of me being inside your head either, would you? Especially when you’re around Adrian.”

“Stop it, okay?!” he stepped into the room. “Stop bringing Adrian up every time you want me to lose an argument!”

“Why not? Is he your dirty little secret then?” he snapped, snarled even.

“Why are you so—”

“Sehun is at the point where he fucking  _trusts_  you!”

“This isn’t about Sehun. This is—”

“I’m giving you the opportunity to tell him yourself, Jongin.”

“Don’t change the topic.”

“I’m not changing any topic here. I put my neck on lines and still people favour  _you_.”

Jongin’s heart shattered a little as every drop of blood drained from his face. “Kai…” A ferocious thunder roared, startling both the brothers and they stood quiet in the room as the rain began to pour outside.

“ _Everyone_  wants you. Every single one! And yet, you’re tossing everyone around as you wish!” his hands fisted around Jongin’s shirt and he yanked him forward until their faces almost crashed together. “Yeah. I might be the brutal one between us, but I’m not as selfish as you, Jongin. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed you’re hurting everyone here. Me, Adrian… Sehun. Do you think any of us deserve it? Do you even know what both Adrian and Sehun had gone through and what you’re putting me through every time you look at me with those bloody… eyes.” The last word dropped straight to a whisper. “When my own twin brother… looks at me like…” he trailed off and shoved Jongin back. “You want me? Well, tough. That’s never gonna happen. It fucking  _can’t_ happen! Even if I want it to. Get that into your thick head! Stop playing with both Adrian and Sehun. Do you have any idea how much it’ll crush Sehun if he knew? Yeah, fine. I thought that he’s fooling with you. But now I know that he really does love you. He might have some other motives, but his feelings for you is sincere, Jongin. And he wants yours to be sincere as well. And fuck, I don’t need to tell you how much you already mean to Adrian. He’s leaving town for you, isn’t he? Because he can’t stand the thought of seeing you be happy with someone else anymore. You can’t be too greedy, Jongin. You can’t want me, Sehun and sleep with Adrian at the same time! You—”

“Stop.” Jongin brought a palm to Kai’s chest as he whispered with his eyes welled up with tears. “Stop. Don’t.” he completely lost his voice as he hung his head. “I don’t… want… this, Kai.”

“Too bad.” Kai spat as he pulled away from Jongin and grabbed his leather jacket. “You will always want to be the centre of attention and I don’t know why you don’t see how you’re torturing everyone that’s around you. Mating is something that stays with us forever, Jongin. And in our lives, it’s the pinnacle point. I don’t think I will ever choose you as my mate. So stop. You get me? Stop whatever the fuck that you’re doing and make a choice. If you’re not serious about Sehun, then end it with him. If you’re not serious about Adrian, then let Adrian go. Tell him. Don’t make him wait.”

Jongin stood there, still and lifeless as Kai stormed out of his room.

 

* * *

 

Evening had befallen the town by the time Sehun was done running errands to get his house repaired and renovated again. He was not sure if he would be able to live there again but it was still home and he might return to it one day if everything had fallen into place.

The rain drummed on the windshield. Sehun pressed his fingers deeper into the steering wheel, finding comfort in the familiarity of the rain that pelted the windows, beating against the roof of the car. The rain had fallen in heavy sheets across the roadway but the sheets were soaked by loam as Sehun pulled the car into the driveway of the forest in which Jongin’s residence remained. Pulling to a stop, Sehun exited the vehicle disregarding the heavy rain that soaked him within seconds. He was not sure if he wanted to be here now. He had tried stalling by staying away for the entire day but now he had no option but to return. What was he even doing anymore? Had he completely given up on destroying the amity and order of the Werewolves? No. He still wanted that. He still wanted to do that at least. He just did not want to destroy Jongin or Kai for the fact anymore. It was bound to be a long tedious process. Rome wasn’t built in a day. But  _this_ Rome… Sehun did not want to build. Vance did. However, Sehun now knew that destroying either Jongin or Kai would not be that easy. He had both Kai and Jongin’s attention. Only that Sehun had a conscience. And the only thing that had triggered that conscience after so many decades was Kai. Last night. Even if Kai knew and suspected Sehun to be having malicious ulterior motives, he still saved him. Sehun was not certain if Kai’s feelings towards him were genuine but he showed Sehun that he was still worth it. Worth enough for someone—for Kai—to save him.

_Every time you reject me… A part of me just…_

The words constantly kept booming in Sehun’s ears. How many times had Sehun rejected him? He did not know what to make of Kai’s accusation. It was not like Kai had always come forth with the best impressions. Perhaps Sehun never really noticed him trying. Perhaps Sehun never  _wanted_ to notice him trying.

 _Just one night doesn’t change anything._ He told himself. Kai was still Kai. Only because Kai was kind to him for one night, it did not mean Kai had the best of intentions. For all that Sehun knew, Kai could be plotting something.

_What a weak argument to not to accept Kai’s half-assed confession last night. To convince yourself that he’s not being serious._

He came to a stop before he even reached the veranda when he sensed Kai’s strong presence within the trees even in the heavy rain. A jolt was sent down Sehun’s body when the images of last night—the images of Kai leaning in to kiss his cheek, holding his hand, brushing his face—all surged into his mind. And the next thing he did was start towards the scent. He careless walked past the trees with the soles of his shoes sticking into the muddy loam as he trampled the patches of grass and fern.

He found Kai seated on a tree’s root with his knees pulled up and arms loosely draped over the knees before he brought his head up to look at Sehun. The rain blinded Sehun for a moment, clustering his eyelashes, making it impossible for him to see straight. Kai was barely shielded by the tree’s canopy layer and was completely drenched from head to toe. It didn’t look like the rain was what bothering him, though.

He looked at Sehun without any zest or exhilaration. In fact, he looked dead exhausted and sleepless. Kai pushed himself up and stared at Sehun for a long moment until Sehun unbearably shifted his gaze. he crossed the distance between them and Sehun wanted to just turn around and walk away. He should. And yet, he stood still like a statue until Kai close enough for them to see their own reflections in each other’s eyes. Kai’s hands came up to Sehun’s face.

The rain ran down their faces to where their lips meet, each of them tasting the cold drops. Instead of detracting from the intensity of the moment it brought them to new heights. Kai kissed the droplets from Sehun’s lips as one of his hands dropped to latch onto Sehun’s waist. It was that burst of ecstatic delirium and excitement that was expressed, not caring if the water soaked through to chill the skin. It was a connection that showed the strength of the feeling, the mutual need. It was a rebellion against the elements. Sehun gave in. Kai pushed his lips in more firmly and the wave that ran through Sehun was intoxicating, making his head swim as he pulled back to take in Kai’s beautiful face. Kai then ran his fingers through Sehun’s wet strands of hair and tilted his head before kissing Sehun just over the collarbone. He licked the raindrop up Sehun’s neck, kissing the vein as Sehun hung his fingers on Kai’s waistband, dragging him closer. Kai buried his face in Sehun’s shoulder curve, his hands flexing around Sehun’s back. He helplessly gave a reduced groan. The insane rain had the most lovable gesture embracing them in the chilled gust of wind which will forever remind Sehun of Kai and this… kiss.

Kai lifted his head again and cupped Sehun’s cheek harder before pressing his lips on Sehun’s lower lip for one last kiss before he pulled away altogether. Without a word, he walked past Sehun and left him to stand amidst the trees in the rain. “Kai!” he called before jolting towards him and the second Kai turned around, Sehun threw himself onto him, grabbing onto Kai’s hair at the back of his head and smashed their lips together. Kai ferociously groaned into Sehun’s mouth as he grabbed Sehun’s hips with one hand while the other slid up Sehun’s wet shirt and was pressed against the back, burning against his back.

They dropped to the forest’s floor, in the mud, in the wet grass with Kai on top of Sehun, sheltering him from the rain as their tongues swirled in Sehun’s mouth. He pushed Sehun’s shirt aside at the bottom and clutched the side of Sehun’s waist, almost crushing and kneading the skin until Sehun moaned into his mouth.


	5. Four

Even with their tongues dancing erotically, swirled around one another in Sehun’s mouth, Sehun tried to be indifferent. It didn’t do to let someone with an ego like Kai’s know how much power he had over Sehun who surely did not want to be dominated by someone like Kai. But here he was, hoping that Kai would crush him, subjugate him under his dominance and show him that he was protected at the same time. As much as Sehun had learnt to defend himself, he still longed for an affection that was beyond comprehension. The sort of affection Kai possibly held for Sehun was bordering just about there. A strong, sensual yet dangerous affection. Sehun did not want to lean in, did not want make it easy or seem too keen. With the loam wet and damp and soft against Sehun’s back, he felt Kai’s weight on top of him. The rain had ceased to a drizzle and they were still thoroughly soaked—the rain had not left any inch of their bodies dry. Even through the wetness of their clothes, Sehun felt Kai’s powerful heat, just as hot as his tongue that invaded every part of Sehun’s mouth. His heat just as merciless as his teeth that abused Sehun’s tender lips. The noise of the rain vanished, replaced by the humming of birds. The forest was the orchestra of their minds, playing one enchanting symphony after another. The wet leaves dance to an unheard beat, whispering their songs to the wind. Sehun raised one of his knees, letting Kai place himself between his legs with Kai’s hand yet and still angrily massaging the soft flesh of Sehun’s waist under his shirt. Every jerky and hitching breath that Kai moaned into Sehun’s mouth was swallowed by Sehun who kept his grip tight on Kai’s wringing wet hair. Then he ferociously pushed Sehun’s bangs back and out of his forehead before clutching the hair on top of Sehun’s head and yanked it down so that Sehun’s neck arched back, pushing his throat forward. “Ah.” Sehun exhaled when Kai disconnected their lips. He lowered his body so close Sehun could feel Kai’s lean but strong body pressed up against him. Sehun felt his warmth and already his mind had placed their lips together. But instead Kai leaned in to caress Sehun’s neck, slow and gentle. He was making Sehun wait and the latter could hardly bare it. He wanted Kai’s lips now, he wanted his aggressive kisses which drove him mad. Then he cupped Sehun’s face in one hand and gave Sehun what he knew he wanted. Without detaching his lips from Sehun’s skin, Kai dragged his lips down to his jaw before peppering Sehun’s bulging Adam’s apple with kisses that were both soft and rough. Kai’s lips were as hot as the fiery Hell, as tender as the first bloom of spring. The contrast between the two facets that Kai presented was something that Sehun could never understand. He can both burn and soften Sehun. Kai knew that once he kissed his neck Sehun’s resistance will crumble. He had it figured, Sehun was aware. After just a few delicate touches of Kai’s warm lips on his neck, his hands started to do Kai’s bidding. They moved from Kai’s hair and fell on Kai’s back, clutching the slick jacket as Sehun’s head swam, all previous thoughts stopped in their tracks. How did the bloodthirst to get rid of one another change into something so dangerously inviting. Now there was only one desire, one wish, and they both knew it was just a matter of time before it would happen. The tip of Kai’s tongue grazed and stroked the most sensitive skin at the bottom of Sehun’s neck, near the collarbone before Kai raised his head, panting fairly with his hands pressed into the soil on either sides of Sehun’s head. They gazed into each other’s eyes longingly; not a word spoken by either of them. Sehun was lost within the breathless paradise of Kai’s dreamy, but monstrous dark eyes and no sooner without any authority he clutched his hand unto Sehun’s hip, leaning his lower body in between Sehun’s legs until their crotches were pressed together. As a result Sehun was dead weakened by his gentle seductive touch on his hip. While pressing his body against Sehun’s and continuing gazing within his eyes, he begun kissing Sehun’s now frail neck again which made Sehun even weaker than before. Kissed by the rain and glistening, the wet ground was cold under Sehun’s back as his hands slowly slid up Kai’s back before they lightly clung onto the back of Kai’s shoulders. The crisp and fresh smell of leaves and tree bark overpowered Kai’s scent. A drop of rainwater slid off the clumped strand of Kai’s hair and dripped onto Sehun’s forehead. Sehun could take his gaze off Kai’s eyes—he never could—but it was like nothing was theirs to behold. An endless depth of ink, sorrow, and pain and lust, longing, heat and love. Sehun could not see whites of his eyes nor the vessels that flowed through them. They were depths of Tartarus holding a thousand souls yet there were none to be seen. Those eyes held a greater darkness resembling cold, autumn nights and starless skies where all the hope seemed galaxies away. And yet he would find himself looking into the abyss until it looks back.

“What… do you…  _want_ , Kai?”  _At least tell me now._ Sehun brought a hand to Kai’s cheek and cupped it before wiping a raindrop off his cheekbone. Their positions were nowhere near comfortable with their clothes sticking to them like a second skin and the mud was sure to leave a mark.

Kai’s eyebrows were scowling at him, his lips parted and trembling. “What do  _you_  want?” he reverted the question back to Sehun in a raspy whisper. “Now.” He finished his sentence and left Sehun lifeless, at the same full of life.

 _I want you._  Sehun repeated the words that Kai had constantly used in his mind and was tempted to utter them himself. Was Kai what he wanted? Or was it just a moment of weakness? A moment to compliment whatever feelings and emotions Kai had deliberately triggered last night. What was he even doing? Being carried away with the emotions that had not been there for decades, that was what he was doing. When Sehun did not answer, Kai pressed their mouths together again.

“Well, this is certainly something I was not banking on.”

Sehun gasp was muffled by Kai’s mouth when he picked up on the scent through the heavy air that the rain had left. Kai got off him at once before Sehun shot upright. Vance stood before them, smirking with his hands tied behind him. His blonde hair that reached just above his shoulders fell over his forehead and blue eyes which looked at Sehun like two pools of cooling water.

“Who… the fuck are you?” Kai exhaled breathlessly. Vance cocked his head a little, smiling lopsided at him.

“I see you’ve met my son.”

For an instant, Kai’s face went entirely pale and he gaped at Vance with shock before he looked over at Sehun, wide-eyed. “He… he…  _what_?!”

Sehun himself stood there taken aback by Vance’s presence and he wasn’t sure if Kai were shocked by the fact that he had met his father for the first time while making out with the son in the rain or if he were appalled by the fact that Vance looked—and  _was_ —no older than 30.

“As for who I am...” Vance’s crooked smile widened as he licked his lips. “I could possibly be your Death.” He spat as his smile vanished and like lightning, he jolted forward and the next thing Sehun knew was his father’s hand around Kai’s neck before Kai was slammed against a tree.

“No, father!” Sehun lurched for Vance but was frozen to the ground when he noticed the tree branch that had pierced through Kai’s back, jutted through his chest. The stench of blood circulated the air like a plague as Sehun’s heart burst into smithereens. Groaning, Kai coughed out the same blood that oozed out of his chest that was penetrated by the tree branch.

“Hm.” Vance tilted his head, smirking at Kai. “You really have the temerity and effrontery to touch him? Hm… How charming.” He crushed Kai’s neck a little, pulling him forward. Kai let out a cry of a beast as he was pulled off the branch and dropped to the ground.

“Stop!” Sehun squawked, snapping out of the shock when his father edged nearer to Kai again. He raced to Vance before shoving the man back, putting himself between Kai who was dying, wriggling in pain on the forest’s floor and his father who looked taken aback. “You can’t hurt him!”

“I…” Vance blinked. “What have you been doing, Sehun? Are you forgetting that he  _is_ a Werewolf?”

“I know what he is and I know what I’m doing. What are you doing here, Vance?” he spat through his gritted teeth.

“You called me.” He answered nonchalantly, picking on his cuticles. “Hm. So he matters to you?”

“He does!” Sehun spun around and dropped to his knees to push Kai who was losing his consciousness to lie on his back. Kai stared at Sehun breathlessly, suffocating. The same lips that had just kissed Sehun were now stained with fresh blood.

“I see.” Vance chimed and lowered down to one of his knees. “I’m truly sorry.” He said and took Sehun’s wrist to his own mouth. Sehun winced with Vance’s soft lips brushed his wrist before a pair of fangs pierced through the flesh. Vance smirked at Sehun before bringing Sehun’s wrist to Kai’s mouth. Kai’s eyes widened when Sehun’s blood touched his lips.

“What—” he protested through the blood that was choking his throat and Sehun was too stunned and knocked senseless at Vance’s actions to react.

“Drink.” Vance ordered, smiling at Kai. Sehun felt the blood gushing out of his veins as Kai sucked it and he pulled his wrist back before dropping to the ground, gaping at Vance with his eyes bulged out.

“What… did you… just do…?” he breathed out.

“Well.” Vance rose to his full height. “I couldn’t possibly let your friend die here since you were ready to fight  _me,_  can I?”

Kai laid on the ground, gasping for air. Vance crouched down and clapped his hand on Kai’s chest. Kai heavily blinked his eyes, gawking at Vance.

“Are you all right, mate?” Vance asked. “My deepest apologies. But you should be all right in seconds.” He patted on Kai’s ripped chest again. “I’m sorry if I’m a little… orthodox. I’ve just never seen my son with a bloody wolf. Snogging even!” he laughed.

Vance shot Sehun a look. He had just fed Kai Sehun’s blood while Kai was still conscious.

Kai sat up when he was half healed but he, too, looked too stunned to react to Vance. Vance had that impact on everyone. “Vampire blood can’t…  _heal_  me.” Kai grunted out.

“Aye.” Vance stood back up and held his hand down to Kai. Kai scrutinized the hand confusedly before taking it and Vance pulled him up to stand. “You might want to ask Sehun how his blood can heal you, then.” a corner of his lips quirked into an arrogant smirk. “Now. I’d like to get warm and cosy. And I can’t wait to meet more of Sehun’s new friends.” He started past Sehun and towards the house.

Kai’s jaw slacked as he gaped at Sehun in both refusal and disbelief. “No.” he let out, taking a step back, palming his forehead and pushed his hair back.

“Kai, I can explain.” Sehun blurted out, advancing a step closer.

“You stop! Stop before I rip your fucking heart out!” he turned on his heel and burst into a sprint into forest.

“Fuck!” Sehun turned the other way and dashed after Vance.

* * *

 

“What the  _fuck_  are you doing?!” Sehun could not help but rebuke in a disapproving tone as he caught up to Vance before the latter could even step closer to the veranda’s steps and pressed his hands onto Vance’s chest, holding him back.

“Whoa. Do you kiss your dear old mother with that mouth?” Vance rasped, halting on his pace to turn and face Sehun with a fake frown. “Where did you learn to speak that way?”

Sehun’s jaw and teeth drew tight. His hands, the back of his head, hair and many parts of his clothes were covered in mud, intermingled with the striking smell of fresh rain and grass in the sweet-smelling rain-kissed darkness, the purple-salmon evening sky freckled with stars. As he glared at Vance, he fought the urge to pounce and hug him. Although Vance showed up out of nowhere and had just attempted to murder the boy Sehun was just kissing, it had been some while since Sehun had seen his father. Right now, Vance was here. Right in front of him. Suddenly, Sehun had nothing to fear with Vance by his side. He was family.

It was the same feeling Kai had imposed on Sehun last night when he saved him from his father. For a moment there, Sehun did not fear his father with Kai there, protecting him.

“Vance.” Sehun let out, lidding his eyes momentarily. “What’re you doing?”

“Sehun, you called me.” Vance replied nonchalantly with rainwater dripping from his cold, frosty, almost white blonde hair. He had the kind of face that stopped people in their tracks. Even after living for almost a thousand years, there was not even a tiny speck of exhaustion on his face. Sehun took a moment’s notice to scan Vance through and through after months of not seeing him. Half the time, Sehun had no clue of where his father was. Vance wore a loose black silk shirt with leather cuffs under the black coat and black trousers which were all drenched by the rain. His ivory hair that had tousled griminess which promised finesse. He had strong arched brows and eyelashes so thick, it could be illegal. And then his eyes— they were deep and catastrophic, a vivid baby blue as a great body of water that softly melted into a milky green .This close, Sehun could see the flecks of silver in his eyes, the flecks of excitement and mischievousness. He had distinct cheekbones and an angular jaw, his pale skin made him look devilishly handsome. He was handsome alright, but inside he was beautiful, filled with wisdom. “If you are quite done with examining me, I would like to get dry and have a warm cup of…  _joe_. I’ve travelled for two nights straight. It’s about time I’ve met the  _friends_ you’ve made here, correct? See, I could act like an ordinary father.”

“You almost killed him! How is that anywhere near—”

“Oh, please.” He rolled his eyes, sticking his hands into the pockets of his black coat. “I thought he was mangling you.”

Sehun scowled. “This isn’t funny, Vance.”

A corner of Vance’s lips twitched into a smirk. “It is a little.” When Sehun did not return the smile, Vance sighed. “I was not going to kill him. It was just a warning.”

“A… warning?”

“Now. Where is your… old man?”

“I… I don’t know.” Sehun answered, a little flustered, a little dumbstruck. “Kai bit him. So I’m guessing he’s weak or at least healing right now.”

“Kai?” he arched a brow before sticking his thumb over his own shoulder. “That was him, was it not?”

Sehun’s silence admitted to his claim.

“Spectacular.” Vance grunted. “Sehun, you and I both know that me being here does not change a thing. That bastard is not going to show up so long I’m near you. That is precisely why he outruns me. You would not be running from him if only you had not been so overly affectionate about him that day when I was about to let him die.”

Sehun felt a brutal tug at his heart. He dropped his gaze, desperately wanting to divert the topic. “Why were you hurting Kai if you didn’t want to kill him?”

“Only a fool would want to brew a war between the Vampires and the Werewolves, Sehun. There will be nothing but absolute discord. I do not wish that and neither did I send you here for that. I sent you here so that you will find a way to drive the Werewolves out of this town, or to say the least, oppress them the way they have been oppressing our kind. And as far as I’m concerned you are going in the right direction. You just had a Werewolf Alpha curled around your tiny finger back there.”

Sehun blinked. “He… isn’t the Alpha... His brother is.”

Vance’s eyebrows cocked high. “Oh. I just… hm.”

“What?”

“It’s just that… everything about him was screaming Alpha. I suppose my senses are a little rusty.” He licked his lips. “Right direction, wrong road, then.” He muttered, peering into Sehun’s eyes. He still held the mischievousness in his icy blue eyes as if his excitement had been ignited after so many centuries. Sehun had rarely seen this exhilaration. “I sent you here on a mission, Sehun. What of that?”

Sehun swallowed. “I’m… working on it.”

“Uh huh. That was you  _working on it_ back there? In that case, you are quite diligent with your work.”

“Vance, he knows what I am now! Why would you do that?! Do you even know what he’s capable of?! If he—”

Vance started towards the veranda again.

Sehun jolted towards him and grabbed his arm. “No, stop. We need to talk.” He hissed. He could not let Vance near Jongin at all cost. Not yet. Not now after he had just demolished everything that Sehun and Kai had built after so much animosity.

Vance faced Sehun. This time, every ounce of nonchalance had disappeared as a glare took its place and Sehun released his arm at once. “Yes. We do need to talk.” There were all sorts of expression behind those blue eyes which had Sehun’s blood pounding his ears. “About how miserably you’re failing.” He snarled beneath the cool mien, glowering at Sehun with a monstrous bloodthirst. He unfastened the remaining buttons of his coat as he turned on his heel. “If I don’t see you back at your own house in ten minutes, I will make sure that everyone you’re associated with in this town will suffer whatever that your secret lover had a moment ago. You surely would not want their heads adorning your lovely porch, right?” Without a single word to utter, Sehun stared at Vance’s back while his stomach churned before Vance vanished into the woods.

The door swung open and Jongin squinted at the light bulb hanging on the veranda before he called in a shallow whisper, “Sehun?” Jongin stared at him with wide,  _red_ , eyes. He looked unsettled and nonplussed as if he had been bawling his eyes out. “Was someone… here?” he quickly scanned the area as Sehun glanced over at him.

“I have to go.”

“What?” Jongin hurtled down the steps and caught Sehun’s arm. “Where? Did you just come back?” he pulled his hand back when he realized Sehun was covered in mud.

“What happened to you?” Sehun inquired half-interestedly, noticing Jongin’s puffy eyes.

Jongin quickly shook his head, sucking on his lower lip. “Have you seen Kai?”

“No. I… I need to go. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Sehun, you shouldn’t—”

“I know. I’ll be fine.” He raised a hand to Jongin’s chest but dropped it, realizing it was stained and quickly started towards the car.

 

 

 

Some of the glasses were already replaced and many of the furniture was replaced as Sehun entered the house, blinded by the darkness for a moment before he turned the lights on. It was odd to have a foreign Vampire’s scent in this house. Sehun pulled his dirtied coat and shirt off before shedding them to the marble floor as he gazed up the stairs.

That was when a cold arm snaked around his shoulders and chest from behind. Sehun froze as he felt the planes of a cold chest press up against his bare back. “Did I not make myself clear enough before I sent you here? You fail this, you fail me.” Vance’s deep voice had Sehun’s spine knotted in turns. Sehun was sure that he smelled of grass and loam but Vance purely smelled of rain.

“I’m not going to fail you.” Sehun said shakily, swallowing the lump in his throat. Vance slowly pulled his arm away and Sehun turned around to face him. Vance stood there just as shirtless as Sehun but with fresh and dry pair of pants on. “I have a plan.”

Vance smirked, but this time, the smirk was not mischievous. It was grave and fearsome. “So far, Sehun.” he stomped over to the couch and took his seat on the armrest. “I understand that the one that I was initially informed of being the Alpha is not the Alpha. From you, I gather that it should not be…  _Kai_  whom you should be aiming for. Are my informant a little misled? Kai is the Heir, is he not?”

“He is. But he wasn’t chosen.”

“Huh.”

“And I am going in the right direction, the  _right road._  I’ve gotten close to Jongin and he is… he’s my…” He could not find the word. Boyfriend? Would Vance even entertain the idea?

Vance watched Sehun with intent for a brief moment before he scoffed and snickered. “Ah. I see your game plan now. I knew you would not be a complete fool to be pointing your attention at someone who’s unimportant.”

“You’re wrong. You wanna get rid of the wolves? Kai is the one that’s standing in our way. Not Jongin.” A pang was sent straight to his heart and Sehun shuddered a little as he ratted Kai out. “He’s a Berserker.”

Vance’s eyes widened. “Well, how did I miss that…” he ran his fingers through his long blonde hair. “I guess I caught him at his most vulnerable moment back there. He could not fight back.”

Sehun’s heart both swelled and clenched and he closed his eyes for a short while, gathering his thoughts. “Vance, I need you to trust me. My loyalty will always lie with you.”

“Good.” He rose to his feet. “Now. Update me with everything that’s happened.” He held his hand out and Sehun heaved a sigh before taking it. Vance carefully pulled him to sit with him on the couch.

 

* * *

 

Jongin perked his head up when he noticed his parents’ car that pulled up at the driveway. The sun was already up, welcoming another day. Another miserable day. He did not bother to rise from his seat on the veranda which he had taken since dawn as he watched his mother exit the car and approached him with a deep frown etched on her face. Her expression wailed in worry and intimidation. Jongin shot up at once when he saw the same expression on his father’s face. “Jongin!” his mother gasped as she hurried into his arms. “You’re okay! Where’s your phone?! Why weren’t you answering it?!”

“Where’s your brother?” rasped his father and Jongin stared at them in confusion. Even the mention of Kai pulled Jongin’s heart down to the darkest pit of his stomach.

“I don’t know where he is.” And as if on cue, he spotted Kai emerging out of the forest, shirtless in this and exhausted with his hair tousled and eyes crimsoned.

“Mom?” Kai rasped, weaving his way towards her.

“It’s Kyungsoo.” Their father muttered under his breath, hanging his head and Kai stopped on his strides as Jongin went immobile.

“What… about Kyungsoo?” asked Jongin.

“He was found dead in East Peak an hour ago.”

Every drop of air was knocked out of Jongin’s lungs and his ears began to ring while Kai stood there, lifeless and breathless. Their mother buried her head into Jongin’s chest, clinging onto her son’s shoulder. “It was definitely a Vampire.” She whispered, trembling against Jongin’s body.

Jongin kept his unmoving eyes on Kai as Kai kept his on Jongin. “I know the bastard who’s responsible for this.” He spat and began to stomp away, hands balled into fists at the sides.

“Kai.” Jongin called after him but he received no response as Kai exploded into a sprint.

 

* * *

 

“Do you love him?” after hours and hours of narration, this was what Vance had to ask. Sehun emptily stared at him for a long moment and took a sip of the blood from the glass. Vance had had him talk him through everything that had happened so far for the entire night that Sehun barely noticed the sun come up.

“I don’t love him. I told you. Jongin is… the Alpha and I need him.”

“No.” Vance settled his glass down on the coffee table and draped his arm over the top of the couch, behind Sehun. “I’m talking about Kai.”

Sehun lowered his gaze as his heart sank. “What are you talking about?” his voice barely passed for a whisper.

“He has you etched all over him.”

“No. We got… carried away by… everything that happened that night.”

Vance was paralyzed for a second before he sharply glanced over at the door. “Speak of the devil.”

“What?”

Without a warning, Vance shot up and moved towards the door and Sehun quickly followed after. Then he sensed the scent along with the pungent stench of blood. Sehun pushed the door open and that was when a body was hurled onto the veranda. Vance hauled Sehun back by the arm before Luhan’s dead body slammed into Sehun’s legs. His eyes and mouth were frozen wide open in an expression of stunned surprise. Sehun’s face fell faster than a corpse in cement boots. In that instant his skin became greyed, his mouth hung with lips slightly parted and his eyes were as wide as they could stretch, staring at Luhan and the ripped,  _empty_  chest. “No…” he brought his head up and the moment he saw Kai climbing up the steps.

* * *

 

Kai halted two feet before Luhan’s lifeless, heartless body. “You started this.” He accused in a low growl with his abs contracted in tension and chest heaving savagely to fill its lungs with air. It was not too difficult to see the anger boiling deep in Kai’s system, as hot as lava. It churned within, hungry for destruction. The pressure of this raging sea of anger. His red laced eyeballs pierced right through Sehun’s non-existent soul at an attempt to devour it as if he had not already. He had destroyed every wall that Sehun had put up the minute he kissed him in the rain.

Sehun knew instantly from the look in his eyes that they’d hit their mark. In that instant whatever that they had built between them in the past few days shattered into glassy shards. Nothing would ever be the same again. Sehun dropped his gaze to Luhan’s blood-stained body again. Although he and Luhan never really connected much, Luhan was still the first person to invite Sehun to this town, he was the first person who was always there for Sehun even if he were nothing but an errand boy. “What is this?” Sehun asked in a whisper, bringing his head up to painfully look at Kai.

“What is this? This is the price you pay for what you brought into this town.” Kai spat through his clenched teeth. “Kyungsoo’s dead.”

Sehun blinked. “What?”

“I’m guessing you’re either unaware of the news or you’re just playing it out because you seem to be so goddamn good at it!”

Sehun felt his heartstrings being strummed mercilessly. “Kai, what are you talking about?”

“Who do you think needed some Werewolf blood as well as a bit of a revenge for what I did to him that night for  _you_? Kyungsoo’s dead because I… because of me.” His temper was like TNT, once the sparks started to sizzle there was very little time to duck and cover. Sehun knew he should just stay quiet and wait for the storm to abate. Kai’s face mottled crimson, his eyes popped, his neck strained. His words were spat out with the ferocity and rapidity of machine gun fire.

“Kai, no…” Sehun almost raised a hand to his mouth but Vance’s grip on his arm prevented him from doing so.

“Because I saved you.” Kai muttered and for a very brief moment, Sehun saw the vulnerability in his eyes. “I already knew that you were trouble. That you carried some sort of agenda with you. But I disregarded every one of my instincts because I…” he trailed off, swallowing hard. His fuse simmered and fizzed like a firework in a chill autumn breeze, then he exploded with unrestrained fury. “I learn from my mistakes. Never again will I put a leech before myself and the security of my pack. You brought him here. And I give one day to leave my town before I do your fucking father a favour and end you myself.”

Sehun remained as still as a cadaver and just as pallid, unblinking against his onslaught. He had nothing to say. He had nothing to defend himself with. “You… you killed Luhan?”

Kai stared at Sehun with an outrageous gloat. “And if I say I did?”

Sehun ripped his arm free from his father’s grip and lurched forward only to have Vance bolt before him and put himself between Kai and Sehun. “It’s best you leave.” Vance calmly told Kai. “Now.”

“You think I should be scared of you? Count?” Kai snarled and Sehun tightened his fists hard. “That’s what you are, right? The Count and his princeling.” Kai spat as if the words were venom on his tongue. “That’s how his blood can heal me. That’s why he’s stronger than any other Vampire. He didn’t even need my blood when I bit him. Explains his arrogance. Explains why he’s after the First Alpha. I knew I was right to have torn his throat out from the first minute I met him.”

Vance smiled. “You really should not be threatening him right in front of me. Kai, is it?” he took a step forward and Kai retreated a step back. “And yes, I sincerely think that you  _should_ be scared of me. You are, after all, a common Werewolf.”

“I’m a Berserker. I won’t go down without a fight. And before I do, I’ll make sure that everyone who you care about is dead.”

“Oh, that is the thing, Kai.” He edged even closer. “I’ve lived for almost a thousand years, I’ve learnt to not to care too much. You, however, care too much. Correct me if I’m wrong. It is in your nature to care for your pack members. Additionally, you care for a Vampire now, too even if you don’t wish to admit. You might  _think_ that you stand a chance against Sehun, but you surely  _don’t_ against me. So I suggest you get off my property before I waste such a beautiful creature of the night because I am quite tempted to do so right now. You now know that he’s a Prince. So? You feel betrayed or is that you feel like you are no longer a higher creature, that you  no longer have an upper hand? You ought to stick with the dirty lowlifes, dogs you call your brothers from now on. Do not covet for something that is far beyond your reach, Kai. Oh, and I’m sure you’d want to send your brother my warmest regards. But I doubt that you’ll tell him what you’ve just found out. It does not seem to me that your brother trusts you very much and from what I’ve gathered from Sehun, you two have a great deal of drama to sort yourselves.” He half turned before he stopped again. “But if you  _are_  thinking of convincing your brother of whatever evil plan that you think Sehun has schemed, you ought to remember that he  _is_ a Prince. I am trying to avoid a war, but if you insist, I’d gladly remind you that Sehun has an army of his own. You, on the other hand, have a handful of distrusting wolves. Minus one now.” He grinned. “So, stay away. And we do not take orders from you. Last time I checked, you… are  _not_  the Alpha.” His smirk had both Kai and Sehun stumped. “There is a reason why you are not, I presume.” With a scoff, Vance turned his back to Kai.

“This won’t end here.” Kai let out. “If you don’t leave, I can promise you that you will have the war that you don’t want.”

Vance turned his head back. “Don’t challenge me. I have, after all, killed hundreds of your kind. The reputation of a Count should exceed even  _your_  expectations, right? Do some dig-up. You might just realize how wrong you are to stand here before me, quite so gallantly. Sehun did not harm your friend. Therefore, he has not violated any terms of the treaty you hold with the Vampires in this town. I suggest you go look for the one who killed your friend rather than waste your time here. Now get the hell out of here.”

Kai’s eyes darted over to Sehun momentarily. They were filled with disappointment and anger. Anger because he had lost something that was held dear to him. More than one. As he turned on his heel and vamoosed out of there before disappearing into the forest that surrounded the house, Vance let out calm sigh. “I like him.” he said, smiling smugly and Sehun gaped at him in horror.

“He killed him.” Kai killed Luhan. Sehun dropped to his knees and carefully lifted Luhan’s heavy head before cradling it in his arms.

“No, he did not.” Vance said with assurance and Sehun looked up at him confusedly.

“You heard him. An eye for an eye. Even if I weren’t directly involved in Kyungsoo’s murdering, I was the main reason my father came to this town. Kai was protecting  _me_  that night when he bit him. If it weren’t for me, none of this would have happened.”

“No. Do you seriously think Kai—a merciless, yet righteous Berserker—would stoop this low? If he thought you were the reason for his friend’s death, he would have challenged you up straight. He would not attack you this way even if he sounds like he would. I was not joking when I told you everything about him screamed Alpha. In my experience, no Werewolf like him would attack an innocent. Especially a Berserker who would only challenge and fight someone worthy of fighting. Someone his own size. I don’t think this boy, Luhan, cuts the description.”

Sehun pinned his father with a deadpan lour. “Who do you think did this, then?”

“A Werewolf’s best defence is its teeth, its venom. Not ripping the heart out. That’s a Vampire’s defence.”

Sehun was not sure if he were more relieved or angrier. “So it was him, then. My father.”

“I could still smell his scent. Sharpen your senses, Sehun. They seem rather blunt.” He crossed over Luhan’s body and stopped at the door. “That boy. Kai. Is very fascinating.”

With a sharp turn, Sehun glared at Vance. “None of this would have happened if you didn’t let him know of who we are.”

“I helped you, Sehun. Trust me, you would not want to deal with this uncontrollable wolf, especially when you’re falling for him.”

“I’m not!”

Shrugging, Vance smirked. “I think it’s about time I choose another heir.”

That instant, Sehun’s face withered as flowers at the end of autumn. “What?”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’m not cutting you off. I just think I want another hybrid.”

Sehun bolted up. “Vance.”

“And I think I’ve found just the right candidate.”

“You… can’t. The last time—”

Vance clasped his hands on Sehun’s shoulders, beaming wide. “Last time… it was a mistake, Sehun. I chose the wrong wolf. And yes, I had to end him myself. But a hybrid in 500 years does not seem unjust, does it? Can you imagine? Having a Berserker and a Vampire in one, all sired to me?”

“No. No. Please. Not him.”

Vance’s pink lips stretched into a lopsided grin. “You do care quite a deal for him.”

“Nothing of that sorts. I just don’t want him to… Please. Not him.”

“Sehun. You need to often remind yourself that I am the Count and I am mighty. Although a little humorous.” He patted on Sehun’s shoulder and cupped Sehun’s cheek before caressing it. “I do as I please. I’m not your real father.” He leaned in and kissed Sehun’s cheekbone before withdrawing himself into the house. “Oh and I hope your  _real father_ does show up sooner or later. I need to be on my way.”

Vance could not be serious. Sehun turned to Luhan and crouched down with a heavy heart. “I’m sorry.” He murmured under his breath, dragging his fingertips along Luhan’s bluish cheek and lifted him into his arms, pressing Luhan’s face against his chest. The least Luhan deserved was a proper burial.

 

 

 

Never in his life had Sehun feared death. He had welcomed it with open arms for a short period of his life. He never suppressed dealing with the notion, forever ready to depart. Death was a body or shadow that lurked in the dark, He crawled under little children’s beds and he was always there. He was always there, following Sehun. He was the ghost that people fear and he was the tormentor of the many corpses claimed by death. Sehun wanted Him.

“Thank you.” Sehun looked up at the man who was blinking his bloodshot eyes before glancing over at the woman who sadly smiled at him. “Thank you. I didn’t think that someone like you would even bother.” said the man, gulping the sob back. Sehun turned to shovel the remaining dirt and covered the grave properly before turning to face Luhan’s foster parents again.

“I got him into this mess. That the least I could do.” Sehun muttered, hanging his head in both shame and guilt.

“He deserved a second chance. That’s why I turned him. I guess I should have just… let him—”

“Don’t blame yourself.” Sehun took hold of the man’s hands after sticking the shovel into the ground of the forest. “I didn’t take the time to get to know him. But now I wish I had.”

“In the end, we only regret the chances that we didn’t take.” He muttered, looking straight into Sehun’s eyes. “I know that you are remorseful, but Luhan always thought great of you. So it is not your fault.”

“I can’t really tell you the whole story, but I promise you… I will make things right.” He retrieved his hands. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

As soon as the man nodded his head, Sehun left them to mourn for Luhan’s death and bolted for his car on the roadside.

Kai found Luhan. If Vance were right, then Sehun needed to hear it from Kai’s mouth. He could not bear to even think that Kai would do such a thing to get back at Sehun after everything that they had shared in that short moment. He did not get Vance’s angle. But one thing was certain—Vance did not like the idea of Sehun being around Kai. He honestly did not think that Vance was even being careful. It was as if he wanted to see a show, a performance for his own pleasure. Unless if Vance had other plans…

Pulling the car over, Sehun gushed out before he spotted both Jongin, Kai and quite unexpectedly, Chanyeol on the veranda, dressed in black shirts and pants. Nothing formal. It was Death that had engulfed them as well. As soon as Kai’s eyes fell on Sehun who was approaching them, he jumped over the railings of the veranda and landed on the ground. Sehun almost wanted to hug himself, but he kept his face straight as he walked up to him. But he never even had the chance to utter a word when Kai’s fist struck a side of his face. “With audacity do you show up here without your fucking chaperone, huh?!” Kai shouted, grabbing hold of Sehun’s collars. And behind those glowering eyes, Sehun still saw the hint of tenderness which had held him down against the forest floor yesterday.

“Kai, I need to talk to you.”

“I could kill you first and do the talking later.”

“Kai! What the fuck are you doing?!” Jongin yanked Kai away from Sehun and shoved him back.

“What am I doing? What are  _you_ doing?! Did you not hear a single word that I just told you?! He’s the fucking Count’s heir!”

“I heard you. Okay? But you need to calm down.”

For a very short second, Sehun thought that his heart had managed a beat. The anger, the uncontrollable anger he saw in Kai’s eyes and heard in his growl took him aback. Kai lunged for Sehun again and almost pushed Jongin aside.

“Stop it, Kai!" Jongin shoved him back, keeping himself firm between Sehun and his brother. “Snap the fuck out” Kai lurched forward again before he was blocked by Jongin.

“You're gonna fucking defend that leech?!”

“Better him than you! Don't make me hurt you, Kai.”

Kai froze for a moment as he stared at Jongin with a baffled look. “You'll... hurt me?  _You_? I will have your head ripped off before you could even get a claw on me, Jongin.” his eyes darted past Jongin's shoulder to pierce through Sehun again. His face was consumed with vexation and eyes slurring aggression. For a moment, he looked like a murderer. “You have my word.” he spat at Jongin. “He will die in my hands.”

“Over my dead body.” he gave Kai another shove, sending him staggering back.

“As you wish.” he snarled before turning on his heel. He walked over to the steel pipe near the car shed before ripping it out of the ground. Regret washed over Sehun like the long slow waves on a shallow beach. Each wave was icy cold and sent shivers down his spine. How he longed to go back and take a different path, but now that was impossible. There was no way back. There was no way to make it right. The remorse would eat at him every day of him life, that was if Kai did not end him now. The nausea swirled unrestrained in his empty stomach. His head swam with half-formed regrets. His heart felt as if his blood had become tar. Melancholia hung over him like a black cloud, raining his personal sorrow down on him as he stared at Kai. His heartache was like a wolf eating at his chest, tearing its way to his trembling heart. It threatened to devour him, eat him whole and leave nothing but scraps behind.

That instant, Sehun realized what Kai done to him. He connected to a part of him others never felt. Kai had seen a part of his soul that Sehun never wanted to let out of the bag. He had touched Sehun and saw his reaction, beautiful and raw. For those moments Sehun were more real than the blood in Kai’s own veins, and he had felt Sehun like the beating of his own heart. The bond they forged was still molten when Sehun tried to stop, too nascent to resist his urge to hide once more.

The second Kai lifted the heavy pipe as he advanced forward towards Jongin, Chanyeol let out a loud gasp, snapping Sehun out of his thoughts and he jolted past Jongin before grabbing the pipe that Kai had aimed to slam Jongin with. “Your fight is with me. Tell me now. Did you imprint on me?” Sehun spat, crushing the metal pipe under his grip. Kai’s response to that was a brutal stomp on Sehun’s chest, sending him flying back before Sehun crashed the ground. Coughing out blood, Sehun shook his head, forcing himself back to his feet.

“What is going on?!” Jongin’s mother screeched as she burst out of the house. She was also dressed in black. Kai flipped the pipe in his hand and started towards Sehun. That was when Jongin burst into a run before exploding into an eruption of thundering growling and the ground rumbled a little when the russet-sepia wolf crashed between Kai and Sehun. Kai came to a halt, glaring monstrously at the chestnut-furred wolf that stood before him, growling and snarling and for every step that it took forward, Kai took a step back.

* * *

Jongin’s wolf form was nothing like Kai’s. The wolf was nothing like its kin. Instead of looking aggressive it had the vibes of docility. Whatever gene it needed to be an alpha was not there. Instead, Jongin looked like a blessing among the dark, cruel, diabolical night creatures. His brindle brown fur was tawny, adorned by streaks of gold. He was breath-taking. And unlike his brother, Jongin did not pose Death and Darkness themselves in this form. And neither was he as big as Kai or Adrian. Kai, on the other hand, was monstrous, deadly and exhibited dominance above all. Jongin was a protector, a hope. He was nowhere a match for Sehun.

For a stupid moment, Sehun wanted to put himself between Kai and Jongin. But he was stock-still, staring endlessly at Jongin advancing forward one step at a time and much to Sehun’s surprise, Kai was retreating, frowning heavily at his brother. Sehun barely paid any attention to Chanyeol who was bracing himself against the railings, with blood drained from his face and eyes popped out in horror.

“Stop this madness!” their mother gasped as she hurried to Kai’s side and clung onto him, pushing him back from the growling beast. Sehun expected Kai to at least spark a fight, but all that Kai did was pin Jongin with a disappointed look. He gently pushed his mother aside and forged on a step.

“One of our pack members just died.” Kai said, looking down at Jongin who responded with a snarl, flashing his clenched razor sharp teeth. “My  _friend_ … has just died.” His voice was tight as if he could barely breathe at the moment. “ _Our_ friend, Jongin. Someone we’ve known since the day he was born. Because of him.” Kai’s eyes shot to Sehun briefly before dropping down to frown at Jongin. “And all that you care about is protecting him instead of avenging Kyungsoo? What wrong has he done? Why does he deserve this when all the mistakes were done by us? You’re forgetting that part of our family has died because of the murderer he brought into this town.” He jerked his finger in Sehun’s direction before looking away, blinking the tears that began to obviously show away. “I guess I’m the one who lost everything in one day. A part of me will always be empty while you still have the choice. You always have. But today, it’s not about you and me, Jongin. And I have no strength to fight you anymore, knowing that you are ready to defend the person who brought this all on us. You can’t see that he’s ruining us? That he has been doing it all this time?!” Kai looked up at Sehun and he held Sehun’s shaken gaze, scowling. “Because he sure did ruin me.” Tossing the pipe to the ground, Kai turned around and faced his mother. “Still think choosing him as the Alpha was the best choice?” he muttered, inhaling sharply. “I need to go. I have a funeral to arrange.” He glanced back at Jongin with a spiteful look before starting for his SUV at the car shed.

There had not been a day that Sehun had felt this lifeless. Every look that Kai had shot was like a dagger to his heart.

_A part of me will always be empty while you still have the choice._

As soon as Kai was out of there, the umber nut-brown wolf turned and met Sehun with its golden eyes.

“Someone pinch me.” Chanyeol breathed out as he dropped to the ground, gawking at the wolf.

 

* * *

 

“Here. Y-your mother asked me to g-g-give you this.” Chanyeol handed Jongin a mug of warm water with a trembling hand as he stared with his full eyes when Jongin walked through the door after throwing on some fresh clothes.

“Chanyeol.” Jongin sighed, accepting the mug. “I’d be glad to explain everything to you. But not just now. You’re not the first human who knows about this. So can you keep this a secret?”

“I’m  _human._  You’re not… Wow.” Chanyeol clasped his hand over his forehead. “This is all too much to digest. Can you imagine? You just fucking burst into… into… oh God.” He slumped back on a pole with his mouth wide open to gasp for air. “I’m dreaming.”

“You’re not.” Jongin glanced over at Sehun who was seated on the veranda’s steps, gazing into the emptiness before him. “Listen. You cannot tell anyone about this. Or I might have to get rid of you.”

Chanyeol gulped. “That means you’ll…” he swallowed again. “Turn… into that… wolf… and… kill… me… right?”

Jongin nodded, keeping his eyes low. “I know that you cared about Kyungsoo. You deserve to know that he was also one of us.”

“That would explain his temper so much.” He gasped, leaning heavily onto the pole. “My mouth’s sealed. But is… Kai… and…” he shot Sehun a look.

“No. Kai is. Sehun isn’t.” Even when his name was uttered, Sehun did not flinch. He continued to aimlessly stare at the vacant ground before him.

“This… changes everything. You do exist. The myths about this town is not a myth at all!” Chanyeol clasped a hand over his mouth to stop himself from gasping.

“Chanyeol, can you… wait inside? We’ll have to be the funeral in a moment. And I’ll tell you everything that you want to know, in return for your silence. And I promise you, none of us would hurt you here.”

“I heard that my mom say many things about… things like you. Oh my God, I just never thought that any of it would be true!”

Jongin brought a hand to Chanyeol’s arm and gave it a gentle stroke. “Thank you for understanding.”

Chanyeol shakily nodded as he staggered into the house. Jongin did not trust him entirely, but if anything, he knew that he could earn Chanyeol’s fear. It was not Chanyeol’s fault anyway. Besides, there were people in this town who knew about both Werewolves and Vampires. And they knew how to keep their mouths shut since no one believe them anyway even if they were to say something. Even so, Jongin should not have had that outburst without considering Chanyeol’s presence. His mother’s presence. The last thing he wanted right now was for his mother to lose her sleep over her sons being at each other’s throats for a Vampire. She never questioned Jongin and his decisions. But now, she probably had second thoughts about trusting him.

Jongin took his seat beside Sehun and let out a loud sigh, emptying his lungs which still felt as heavy as a boulder tied to his chest. There was nothing to be done to rectify anything. The moment Kai came back home, Jongin knew something was wrong. But he did not understand what was so dire and extreme about Sehun hiding his true identity because it was understandable. He’d have far too many enemies if people knew that he was the Count’s son. But the way Kai had exploded suggested that he was expecting Jongin to not to trust him. The thing was, even then—although he was very disappointed—Jongin did not know why Kai had reacted so violently to the truth. Or maybe, Jongin was just too tired of all the secrets and lies that surrounded him. Everything was beginning to wear him down. He was determined to face Sehun about this, but now, he just wanted to wane into thin air. Now he understood why Kai’s response had been so aggressive. And Jongin would forever mean nothing to Kai. Not the way Sehun meant to Kai.

“I’m sorry.” Sehun said in an undertone, almost as silent as the heavy wind.

Jongin hanged his head, exhaling tiredly. “I know you are.”

“I never meant to hurt your feelings, Jongin.”

He brought his head up and faced Sehun with a frown. “But you did, Sehun.”

There was a long stretch of silence between them and Sehun never looked up at Jongin even once. “How much… did… Kai tell you?”

“Enough.” Jongin sighed, running his fingers through his hair. “He told me that you are the Count’s heir. And that’s why you’ve been hanging around with me. Because you wanted something from… the Alpha.”

“Jongin—” he finally looked up but Jongin cut him off.

“Is that the truth, Sehun? Kai doesn’t have any evidence to prove his accusation. He never has. But his instincts have always been better than mine. And time and again, he’s proven me wrong.”

Sehun’s eyebrows furrowed into a miserable frown and he lowered his eyes. “I never… Jongin, I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Stop. Enough with these secrets. Just tell me upfront. Did you ever have any feelings for me?”

Sehun was mum as his lips parted, quivering a little. Then, he murmured, “I did, Jongin. But…”

“But you don’t love me.” Jongin spat and glanced away. “Kai was right, then. What did you need me for? Sehun, since the day I met you, I’ve done nothing but blindly trust you because deep inside, I believed that we truly stood a chance. And even when Kai told me that you’re the Count’s son, I didn’t feel betrayed. I tried to make sense of why you could have hid the truth from me. You know why I jumped in between you and Kai? Even when I can now see that I have no role to play between you two? Because I don’t want my brother to do something that he will regret later. I know that you still don’t want to admit and I still want to trust you. But… you and I… both have made lots of wrong decisions for selfish reasons.” He took in a shaky breath. “But Kai hasn’t.”

Sehun’s eyes fired a red flare and he wiped his cheeks with his bare palms. “Jongin… I wish I could tell you everything. I wish I could tell you that I will do anything to keep you safe. I wish I could tell you that I didn’t want to do any of this.”

“I slept with Adrian.” Jongin sighed out. Sehun’s bloodshot eyes met Jongin’s with alarm. “So… don’t be too hard on yourself. I haven’t exactly been too true to you either.”

Sehun stared at him with bulged out eyes. “What…”

“I still have feelings for you, Sehun. But it’s plain to see that this is never going to work out. Not with you hiding so many secrets from me. Not with me wanting… someone else. Not with Kai imprinted on you.”

Sehun was silent for a long moment as he glared emptily at the ground. “So, he did.”

“I didn’t realize until you pointed it out. It would explain everything. It would explain why he wants to get rid of you right now. Sehun, Kai would go to the extent to take your life in order to countervail the imprinting. But something tells me that he… he… loves you.” the words almost killed Jongin within, shattering his heart into pieces.

“No… Why didn’t you tell me that you slept with Adrian? When did this happen?”

“That’s not the point. It’s far too damaged to fix anything, Sehun. Adrian gave me the comfort I needed. And I realize I haven’t been fair in any sort of way to him either. Or you. Or… Kai. And if I keep leading you on, we’re going to end up destroying one another. I can’t… do this anymore.”

They did not share another word with unspoken disappointment surging between them. Jongin got up to his feet and heaved in a long breath.

“Sehun, if Kai’s right about you, then I will never forgive you. I hope… he’s not right. I haven’t been a good brother to him. And I haven’t been a good leader either. I was blinded by what  _I_ wanted, by selfishness. And look at where that’s had led me. Now that you that Kai has imprinted on you, I suggest that you leave, Sehun. I would never regret meeting you. So don’t make me.”

“Jongin… I’m sorry.”

“And I’m sorry. I’m sorry that…” Jongin swallowed a sob back, blinking the tears away. “I wasted your time. I’m sorry that I couldn’t be good enough for anyone and I’m such an idiot to trust all the wrong people.”  _In love with someone I cannot have. Betrayed and was betrayed by someone who is too good to be true. Hurt someone who did not deserve it. I’ve disappointed my pack. My family._  Jongin did not deserve any of the people and Kai was right to blame him of all the things that he had. He had seen a bigger goldfish eating at a smaller one. It pecked at the scales until it was kind of naked and vulnerable to infections. That was how the regret was getting him, it was taking a little bit of my defences at a time. It came in waves, what Jongin should have done or said differently, what he shouldn’t have done at all. He could not undo it and he did not know if he can make anything right. All that he can do was try.

Sehun did not reply and Jongin shook his head before dragging his feet into the house. Whether Sehun was leaving or not, Jongin was going to. It was about time Jongin accepted the punishment for yearning and longing for things that was not his. That could not be his. Kai would always be a better Alpha than he will ever be anyway.

 

* * *

 

It was like an insatiable fire that burnt all the oxygen in his body leaving him listless and empty. But now it was more like a thin layer of ice, cooling his insides, a gentle reminder of the pain that came before and a warning not to stoke that fire again. Sehun did not think his heart can survive another inferno. The heartache was like a red hot coal placed in his chest, it glowed and burnt him at the same time, but it did not cool quickly like a coal in water, it throbbed and tortured him in all his walking hours and there was no relief to be found. His heartache had rung him out until he was dry inside, no more tears would come. His insides still felt as raw as if a winter wind was blowing right through his skin. The last conversation haunted him, taunted him, replaying like an echo. His appetite had dwindled to nothing. It was too painful. He did not think that he was capable of these feelings anymore. And yet, here he was.

He entered his house and tossed his car keys onto the side table before walking into the living room. He found Vance standing by the fireplace. Not even once had Sehun thought of lighting the fireplace up, but here Vance was, standing so beautifully with the flickers of fire reflecting in his striking blue eyes. The fireplace, a plain wooden over mantel with an iron surround patterned with grapes and convolvulus set in the middle of the right-hand wall. In this house, only the fireplace was old and aged. Sehun did not think the fire was lit in it for warmth. In front of the grate was a tall electric fire with artificial coals, a high curved back and a triple set of burners. “It is spellbinding, isn’t it? Fire. Something that would kill us, torture us. And yet, it’s fascinating. Like love.” Vance muttered, turning around to face Sehun with a gentle smile.

“I can’t… Vance… I can’t do this anymore.” Sehun almost dropped to his knees as tears brimmed in his eyes. “I came here because of your orders. I was ready to do everything that you asked me to do. But I can’t anymore!”

Vance watched him indifferently as he crossed the distance between them. He took Sehun’s face into his hands and stroked Sehun’s cheekbones with his thumbs. “You really do not have a choice. You are sired to me. You have to do as I say.”

A single tear slid down from his warm eyes, followed by another one, and another one, until soon, a steady stream of salty tears flowed its way down his pale cheek, releasing the sadness and sorrow that had been held inside of him for all this time but still he did not make a sound.

“I sent you here thinking that you would not fail me, Sehun.” Vance wiped the tears off his cheeks and kissed them both. His lips were soft against Sehun’s tender cheeks. “And you did not.”

Blinking, Sehun stared at his father. “I… haven’t? Vance, Kai has imprinted on me. And Jongin… I hurt him. I betrayed his trust. I don’t want to do this. Please.”

“Shh shh. You’ve done the right thing.” He pushed Sehun’s bangs out of his face, wiping his forehead. “I had a clue that Kai had imprinted on you. That plays out well for me. For us.” He dropped his hands from Sehun’s face and gracefully sat down on the couch, crossing his legs. “You will use this for our advantage.”

“What… do you mean?”

“Why do you think your  _father_  keeps running away from me? Why does he make sure that we never meet? He is sired to me because it was my blood that had turned him. But he is smart enough to not to come close to me since he would, without a doubt, have to obey me, please me. And the hybrid I made before, he had the same intentions of staying away from me, thus, not having to obey the sire. So…” he shot Sehun a lopsided grin. “I want Kai to be sired to  _you_. Well, not technically sired, but if he’s mated with you, he has no option but to be bonded to you for the rest of his life. It does not apply to you, since you are not a Werewolf, but it is still the same for him. He cannot run away from you even if he wanted to. And when I turn him, once he’s a hybrid, he would be sired to me.  _And_  you. He cannot run from me because  _you_  cannot run from me.”

Sehun’s heart felt like it had been crushed in Vance’s hand.

Vance rose to his full height and cupped a side of Sehun’s face. The sky blue eyes bored into Sehun’s dark, terrified ones. “So, all that you have to do now is get him to mate with you.”

“No! Vance, how could you even—”

“Sehun, don’t bother. You might say no now. But by the end of the day, all you want to do is please me. That was our agreement. Whether you like it or not, you are sired to me. Do this favour for me and get me Kai. And I will make sure you father never comes near you again.”

Sehun’s mind was sent reeling, unable to comprehend or process what was being heard by his ears.

“To come to think of it, Sehun. I’m already doing you a favour. Kai will be with you forever and something tells me, that is precisely what you want right now.”

“If he comes to know of this, he will be devastated.” Sehun wanted to drive a stake through his own heart at that moment as a tide of misery and anguish washed through him.

Vance shrugged. “Then I suggest you make sure that he does not come to know of this.”

“I can’t.”

With a short smile, Vance brushed past Sehun and picked up his coat. “I’m going to visit an old friend. Don’t test my patience, Sehun. And don’t think you can outsmart me. I created you. I can destroy you as well.”

As Vance stormed out of the room and house, Sehun lowered to the floor and leaned back against the leg of the couch, burying his face into his hands.

 

* * *

 

The funeral was all black clothes and white waxy faces, every one of them with puffed red eyes. The sun shone brilliantly and the virescent colour of the day under its glare was offensively bright. The last light of the day. Everything should be as grey and foggy as Jongin’s emotions, it should be cold and damp with silent air. But the birds still sang and the flowers still bloomed. Jongin walked through the churchyard like a silhouette of himself, wishing he really was as insubstantial as the shadows so that his insides might not feel so mangled. As he took a pew near the front the long held back tears began to flow. He was not ashamed. He cared for Kyungsoo. But not as much as Kai had cared for him. Now he was gone a light had been extinguished forever in everyone’s heart. Jongin sat in his silent grief and awaited the end of the funeral service. The beauty of the sunset only intensified his pain. The defiant sky adorned itself with brilliant reds and oranges, clothed itself in garish splendour. Jongin glared back at the mocking swirls of colour, the whites of his eyes pink by crying and pinker by its refection and without warning an epiphany struck. He dropped his head to see Kai entertaining the people who approached him. He looked like a worse mess than Jongin was. His black shirt was untucked and his black tie was loosened around his neck. He had been here all day long, taking care of the entire funeral service. It was best that Kyungsoo was buried before his body could be taken in for post mortem. Adrian helped with that part. Jongin’s eyes darted over to Adrian who was accepting Lenz from Jongin’s mother. Unlike Kai, Adrian looked sharp as always in his black suit even if he had been running around before and after the service.

Night would soon befall them.

Kai bid Kyungsoo’s teacher good evening before he started towards Jongin. For a moment, Jongin thought that Kai was going to face him. Instead, Kai walked right past Jongin, heading towards his car. “Kai.” Jongin called in the lowest voice possibly with his heart sinking deeper and deeper.

Kai came to a stop and he turned around to meet Jongin with clenched jaw and tightened fists. “Not now, Jongin. I have to settle some things.”

“I know.” Jongin walked up to him. “I… I’m sorry. I didn’t… defend Sehun for him or myself. I…”

“You  _what_ , Jongin?”

“Sehun did not do this. Why are you so mad at him?”

“Because he is the reason we’re all standing here.”

“No. Because he’s the reason a choice was taken away from you.”

“Shut up.” Kai started to turn and Jongin caught his arm.

“Stop fooling yourself. Stop doing the same mistake I did.”

“What do you want, Jongin? I’m really beat at this point. I’m exhausted. By you, by Sehun.”

“I ended everything with Sehun.” Jongin blurted out and Kai paused for a moment to gape at Jongin.

“What?”

“So if you want him, and if you think that’s the right choice, go ahead, Kai.”

“Well, there’s one thing that you’re forgetting. He belongs to a goddamn Count. And he has all the means to destroy us.”

“To dominate you. And you don’t like it.”

Kai shook his head. “I’m going to end this. Once and for all. I didn’t ask for this. And I sure as hell am not gonna be brought down by that leech.” He pulled his arm free and stomped away.

Inhaling sharply, Jongin spun around and marched up to Adrian. Lenz cooed joyously at once at the sight of Jongin and held his arms out to him, pulling away from his father. “Nyee eh!”

“Jongin.” Adrian rasped, steadying Lenz in his arms.

“Are you still leaving?” Jongin asked in a haste.

Adrian blinked. “Nobody else knows, Jongin.” He muttered under his breath. “Yes. Why?”

* * *

 

He really had no option.

 _Really_? Did he really have no option?

Things turned from bad to worse with all possible haste. Sehun did not only come here under his father’s commands. He did not only want to please Vance even if that were the price he was asked to pay by Vance before he was turned. Even if he were sired to Vance. Even if there were nothing that he could do to stop himself from abiding Vance. Sehun wanted to do this as a Prince. He wished to do something to deserve the title. He wanted to be the one Vance’s subjects and followers could look up to because he had done something for them. This land was once the birthplace of the Vampires. But now it was swarmed by their enemies. The Vampires had every right to this town and this was supposed to be their home. Now they were scattered all around the world, hiding, trying to keep their identity while the Werewolves in this town lived as they wished—by oppressing the one kind that they should fret.

And Sehun was failing. He had failed the minute he lost himself. He did not want to hurt Jongin anymore. Yes, before this, he could at least suppress the guilt, the humanity within him. He barricaded all of his emotions with impenetrable walls. And Kai had razed every bit of the walls to the ground when he triggered the helpless boy within Sehun again—the boy who had forever yearned for someone to save him. Kai, on the other hand, changed after the night they first kissed. Or at least when Kai first kissed him. That must have been when he imprinted on Sehun because everything changed after that. What Vance was asking of Sehun now was just pure cruelty. Kai had almost died that night when he saved Sehun from his father. And this was how Vance wanted Sehun to repay Kai? By giving him more heartache? More reason for Kai to be crushed when the only mistake he had done was unconditionally and unintentionally imprint on Sehun?

He raised his head from his hands with dried tears on his cheeks when he sensed the scent and presence. His guts knotted as his stomach churned with excitement rising in his throat. The excitement was inevitable at this point. The scent had taken over his life. Not once had Sehun ever felt this way. Not in decades. He rose to his feet and stared at the opened entrance before he saw Kai marching up the veranda. Sehun’s heart dropped to his stomach with a thud as Kai halted at the door with their eyes locked. He looked like he was running on empty, fatigued and on his last legs. Everything was quieted around them except the low hush of the wind. Kai’s black coat sagged by his shoulders and his black shirt was unbuttoned at the top, revealing his chest cleft. His hair was curtaining half of his eyes. He looked like a complete mess. A complete mess who had just lost his friend, lost his one opportunity to mate for as long as Sehun was alive, and had lost the bond with his brother. All because Sehun had walked into their lives. “Kai.” The name came out as a whisper as the sob choked Sehun’s throat. Kai’s stare remained. His gaze felt like an act of violence, a glare to stop Sehun’s heart if it were beating in the first place. For in that moment Sehun knew that the man he was capable of falling in love, the man who was capable of making him fall in love was standing right in front of him with murderous urge to end Sehun’s life. The person Kai had been was no more. He was no longer the guy who had kissed Sehun with everything he had. He was no longer the guy who looked at Sehun with longing. Instead of his soft gaze that promised love and lust, his eyes glared with an intensity that tightened Sehun’s chest. Though they still shared memories, his eyes drilled out of Sehun any notion of shared spirit.

Kai bent down and Sehun watched him rip the wooden ledge of the doorframe from the floor. The striking noise of the ledge being torn from the doorframe deafened Sehun for a moment before Kai twisted the narrow wooden ledge in his hand and gripped it hard, probing the sharp end which was severed. He stepped into the house with his hand fisted around the ledge that was meant to be used as a stake. There was nothing left to pawn. As Sehun’s eyes skimmed Kai’s murderous mien, his heart shattered into smithereens. This despair was a heady blackness. The notion of hope had become meaningless, if Sehun’s mind should linger on such ideas they started to feel like cruel tricks, as cruel as any desert mirage. The bonds that he was never ready to forge with Kai was now unimaginable.

“Speak.” Kai spat, stopping a few feet before Sehun, holding the wooden ledge up. “What are you doing here? What is it that you’re after?”

Sehun sniffled and quickly wiped the bead of tear that began to trickle down his cheek, but he did not dare to open his mouth.

“I can make this so much harder for you, Sehun. You and I both know that you wouldn’t stand a chance if I were to be hard on you. Where’s your protector? He wouldn’t just leave you unprotected here. What? He seriously underestimates me, doesn’t he?”

Sehun closed his eyes as the tears laced his eyelashes. “I came here for this town.” He let out shakily. “I was sent here to… get rid of the Werewolves.” There. He had an option. “This town, this land once belonged to us. I was sent here to create discord among the wolves so that… we will attain what is rightfully ours. Our home.”

Kai scoffed and snickered, shaking his head. None of the gestures was humorous. Instead, they were filled with hostility. “And Jongin?”

“He’s the Alpha.” Sehun muttered, hanging his head.

“So, if you get rid of him, you get rid of the peace we hold. What you didn’t foresee is me.”

Sehun wiped another tear off his cheek and looked up at Kai. “I came here. I wanted to destroy you all. And I was the one who was destroyed in the end.” He  _did_  have an option.

“Were you?” Kai growled. “I always knew you were trouble. But I didn’t expect this much. I didn’t expect you to be a fucking Prince of all Vampires. I didn’t expect you to be the heir of the ruthless Count who had massacred thousands of our ancestors for the mere joy of it. And you know what the worst part is? I let myself fall for you. Most of the Werewolves imprint without conditions. I don’t. Berserkers don’t. I fell for you first. Before I imprinted on you. So tell me. Who’s destroyed here? You? Or I, who fell for a bloodsucker that wants to root out and extirpate my existence and my family’s?! I knew my brother would be hurt by you. While he hasn’t been entirely true to you, he doesn’t deserve this shit either. I’d rather have my heart broken than have you shatter his. But in the end, you just broke both of our hearts and crushed everything that he and I had left. I don’t want you. Not anymore. But it’s not my choice anymore. I won’t get to live my life for as long as you walk this earth, for as long as my soul yearns for yours!”

“Then kill me!” Sehun’s outburst silenced even the wind as the scream echoed through the house, reverberating through the walls. Kai’s eyes froze on Sehun’s as his chest heaved. An option. “Drive that through my heart. That’s what you want to do right now, right? Do it. You’ll be free. I never asked you to imprint on me. And neither do I understand how it works. But I felt it. I felt everything that you felt when we were together. When you were hostile, I was too. And when you… kissed me… when you…” he trailed off blinking the tears away. “I was given a second life. I will not be able to live with myself anymore. I can’t live with this… pain, knowing that I don’t deserve to keep anyone that cares for me. I lost my mother, my sister, Jongin, and… you. I don’t dare to live an eternity without love. So, do us both a favour and drive that ledge through my heart.”

Kai’s face said absolutely nothing. It was as blank as it could get. He closed the distance between them and Sehun felt like he was drowning, coming back to life and drowning again as Kai edged closer. Sehun thought that he could now distinguish the discrepancies between Kai and Jongin’s scents. Jongin’s scent can never kill a part of Sehun every time he caught a whiff of it.

The sharp end of the ledge made Sehun’s stomach churn when Kai brought it to Sehun’s chest before lightly brushing pushing it right where Sehun’s heart was. Kai’s Stygian dark eyes captivated Sehun’s weak ones with a single look. He felt Kai’s steady breath hasten and heard Kai’s pulse rise. Sehun’s eyes felt heavy with unshed tears that welled up in them as he looked up at Kai. “Here.” Kai breathed, pressing the ledge against Sehun’s chest. “If you really mean anything that you just said, drive this through your heart yourself.”

A pearl-like tear betrayed Sehun’s eye as he accepted the thick ledge. “Would that make you happy? To watch me do it?”

Kai took a step back, wearing an indifferent expression—challenging him. “It’d be a pleasure. Fuck yourself.” As soon as he spun around to leave, Sehun broke completely and without even thinking for a second, Sehun aimed the ledge for his chest and almost plunged it in before Kai’s hand gripped the ledge, holding it back. Sehun peered at him past the tears that blurred his vision. With a merciless haul, Kai ripped the ledge off Sehun’s hands and hurled it to the ground. “That’s enough.” The next thing Sehun knew was Kai grabbing a handful of his hair at the back of his head and yanked it, pulling Sehun’s head back before he crushed Sehun’s lips under his own. Sehun opened his mouth and prepared to belt out the loudest cry he could muster. But he could not even express a moan when Kai’s completely covered mouth covered his—teeth, tongue and lips. His warm lips were nothing like gentle. Firm, hard, aggressive, rough, hawkish and attacking. He tilted Sehun’s head to the side and kissed him, his lips demanding. Sehun felt a smouldering heat deep within him as Kai’s grip tightened, crushing Sehun’s body to his, violent and sabre-rattling. He tugged at Sehun’s hair again, slating his head further, deepening the kiss. It was not too long before Sehun began to kiss him back. Their lips moved fast and uncontrollably, but in sync. Their tongues swirled around one another as their teeth clattered. Sehun fisted his hands around Kai’s shirt by the chest when Kai forcefully shoved him back until his back was jammed against the side table behind without breaking their kiss. Sehun swallowed every gasp for air that Kai let out while their lips were smeared with one another’s saliva. Kai’s heat would be able to leave blisters on Sehun’s skin. Everywhere he touched burnt. As much as Sehun wanted to return the aggression, he’d rather just fall weak in Kai’s hands because right now, he knew what Kai wanted and he sure as hell knew what he wanted.

Kai’s hands slid down to Sehun’s thighs at once as he sucked on Sehun’s lower lip. Everything was moving too fast even for Sehun. Too fast. Too rough. Gripping the back of the thighs, Kai hoisted Sehun up and seated him on the lean table, smashing Sehun’s back against the mirror on the wall which cracked with webs at the impact. Sehun peeled Kai’s coat off in a haste without paying any heed of the crash between the back of his head and the mirror as Kai ripped his shirt and disconnected their lips to drag his down Sehun’s neck. A soft, yet desperate whimper escaped Sehun’s lips as he gripped onto Kai’s hair, spreading his legs wider with Kai pressed between them. He lips left a burning sensation on every part of the skin that he kissed. Grabbing Sehun’s hand, Kai pinned it to the mirror on the wall behind Sehun and nipped at the most sensitive part of the neck. “Kai…” Sehun rasped in a shaky moan and Kai began to kiss up his neck before licking along his jawline.

“Shut up.” he grunted with his hand curling around Sehun’s neck as their lips met in a delirious kiss. His hand remained clutching Sehun’s neck when Kai slowly lowered down, kissing along Sehun’s sternum, right until his abdomen. Kneeling down, Kai kept his eyes on Sehun’s face and dragged his hand from Sehun’s neck, along his chest, before latching it onto the side of Sehun’s waist while his other arm curled under and around Sehun’s thigh. His lips touched Sehun’s stomach with brutality before he began to eat every inch of the flat planes of Sehun’s stomach—suckling and tasting it thoroughly. Swallowing, Sehun threw his head back against the mirror and closed his eyes as Kai devoured his waist. His tongue grazed every line, every fold and his teeth abused the soft and tender parts of his waist. As Kai kissed his way to Sehun’s narrow navel, Sehun could hear Kai’s heartbeat quicken. Kai curled both his arms around Sehun’s thighs which hovered above Kai’s shoulders and began to suck on the skin under the navel. Sehun’s insides craved his touch. They craved each other’s touch. As soon as Kai’s moist, plump lips imprinted all over his waist and stomach, Sehun lost all rational thought, he was just consumed at the thought of Kai’s hot breath on his navel, edging closer and closer to the cock.

Kai did not give him what he wanted. Not yet at least. He rose to his full height and pulled his own shirt off. He barely gave Sehun a moment to appreciate his toned, bronzed, lusting body as he smashed their lips together again. The cruel and hungry kiss, along with Kai’s animalistic grip by the hips obliterated every thought. For the first time in forever Sehun’s mind was locked into the present. The worries of his life evaporated like a summer shower onto a hot car. He was here. He had no idea how or why, but he knew what Kai  _wanted._  As Kai lifted him up without breaking the sloppy kiss, Sehun loosely wrapped his legs around Kai’s waist with Kai’s hands clutching his ass for leverage. With his arms snaked around Kai’s neck and shoulders, Sehun entangled his fingers in Kai’s hair and kissed him with every ounce of energy that he had. Their bare chests burned against one another as Kai effortlessly carried him up the stairs.

There was no way in Hell Sehun could break his faith with Vance. Whatever Vance said— it was his oath. Whatever that Vance asked him to do—it was his promise. His words were attestations for Sehun. His trust was what Sehun’s life was founded on. His orders had Sehun’s compliance. As much as Sehun wanted to betray Vance by submitting himself completely to Kai and to tell Kai everything that Vance had asked—no, ordered of him, Sehun was bound by Vance’s decree. He belonged to Vance. Decades ago, when Sehun surrendered to Vance, he allowed all of himself to be used by the Count. In more than one way. In manners which Sehun yearned, but had never gotten. He had given Vance an oath. It was an oath that bound him to Vance for life—an eternal life. The kind that transcended the mess of an eternity to strike an unbreakable bond.  _That’s the price._ Sehun cannot betray him even if he wanted to. The supernatural sire bond he let himself have with Vance forbade him from doing anything that was against his Count’s pleasure. He was tongue-tied. And he wanted this. He wanted  _this_ with Kai. He knew what he was getting himself and Kai into. It was not fair to Kai who would be mated and bonded with Sehun for the rest of life. Or at least… until Sehun lost his life. If there were something that Vance did not control until now was the choice of Sehun’s death. He just wanted this little, selfish, precious thing for himself. Something to hold onto when he died. He had found something that he never would have conjectured. A short moment of love and desire was better than a perpetuity of hatred and remorse. He will free Kai from his bond by taking his life after this. But right now, he wanted to give Kai what he wanted and he wanted to take something for himself. Never in his life had Sehun ever gotten anything that he truly yearned for. Vance did save him from the torment he used to call life, but he did not exactly liberate him. And now, Sehun wanted to be liberated. First, by Kai’s lovemaking. Then, by death.

Their lips did not tear away from one another even when Kai laid Sehun to lie on the bed before mounting him. Still moving sloppily, their lips hungered for more. Kai kissed him like he had a barbaric thirst to draw Sehun’s soul out through the kiss. Sehun’s legs were still lightly clinging onto Kai’s hips as Kai severed the kiss to gasp once for air and connected their mouths again. Kai’s caramel body was already damp and hot with sweat and Sehun dragged his cold palms down Kai’s back until his hands were on the small of it, leveraging at the waistline of his pants. Kai’s lips and tongue kissed not only every inch of Sehun’s mouth, but all around it, too. He peppered the chin and jaw with sloppy kisses as one of his hands gripped Sehun’s hair at the top of his head while the other harshly cupped Sehun’s ass, lifting the thigh to wrap it around his hip. Sehun slowly pushed his upper body up to let their chests touch. Sehun wanted to be left breathless. He wished—not for the first time—that he would not heal from whatever pain that Kai was about to inflict on him. “Kai.” Sehun moaned against Kai’s throbbing lips. “Your heart…” he whispered as Kai rested his forehead on Sehun’s, panting to gather his breath as his chest heaved against Sehun’s with his eyes clenched closed. Sehun could not finish the sentence himself as he was lost in the murderous beauty of Kai’s heart beating against his still heart. He felt and heard every pound of that heart. Every pound spelled Kai’s doubts. “You don’t… trust me?” Sehun let out, brushing his lips on Kai’s swollen lower lip. “I want you to trust me, Kai. I want you to need me tonight.  _Want_  me.” Much to Sehun’s surprise, Kai’s hand came to his neck and clutching it, his eyes flashed open and a low growl escaped his lips.

“Don’t steal the words from my mouth.” He hissed and crashed his lips onto Sehun’s again, kissing him twice as brutally before Sehun flipped him to lie beneath him and descended upon. Sitting on Kai’s lower abdomen, Sehun straightened up, pulling away from the kiss with a thin line of saliva between their bottom lips. He drew his palms down Kai’s chest and abs as Kai watched him breathlessly. Sehun bit his lip when he felt Kai’s cock bulging through his pants and brushing his ass.

“Then, ask me. Tell me. Tell me everything that you’ve wanted to tell me, Kai.” The cock was hard under Sehun’s ass and Sehun had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep his hips from rocking to rub his ass against the erection.

“Words can wait.” Kai rasped, pushing himself up and began to fill Sehun’s hard chest with desperate kisses as Sehun held onto Kai’s hair.

“No.” Sehun whimpered. “Tell me now.” He might not get the chance to hear them later.

Kai’s lips neared one of the nipples and Sehun’s cheeks filled with every drop of blood that they could manage when Kai lightly brushed his lips on the pebbled pink nipple with his eyes pulled up to watch Sehun’s reaction. Sehun let his fingers clasp onto Kai’s hair at the nape while Kai’s hands were steady on the sides of Sehun’s waist. A jolt was sent straight to Sehun’s tailbone when the tip of Kai’s wet, hot tongue skimmed the nipple. Sehun rose a little to align himself with Kai’s face as Kai slowly began to suck on the nipple. His hand snaked around Sehun’s hip and ass until it was between Sehun’s thighs, groping in between the butt cheeks over the jeans. Sehun held onto Kai’s shoulders as he thrust his hipbones again Kai’s chest with his throat projecting soft moans. “Is it your first time, too?” Kai’s warm breath stung the tender nipple. He dragged his hot mouth down Sehun’s sternum and licked his abs as Sehun’s knelt up. Kai brushed his knuckles and the back of his fingers along Sehun’s waist before latching his teeth on a side of the waist and gently suckled it.

“Oh God.” Sehun shuddered a little when Kai kissed the spot he had just sucked before he dropped back to lie down. Sehun watched him with the direst desire and embarrassment at the same time. It was not comfortable. He was nervous. But that only confirmed that this was real. They were nervous around one another and yet, they wanted the adrenaline rush. Kai stroked the frames of Sehun’s torso, massaging and kneading the corners of the waist, wanting to get past the waistband of the jeans. “Kai.” He gasped in muted tones, pressing his hands onto Kai’s ribcages as he slowly rocked his hips, grinding his ass on Kai’s cock. The friction between their pants was bothersome for Sehun, but it was probably heavenly for Kai who roguishly squeezed Sehun’s waist before he hastily unbuttoned Sehun’s jeans and flopped him to the bed again.

“Don’t.” he snarled, cupping Sehun’s jaw, scowling hard. “I get to ruin you tonight. Don’t lead me.”

Sehun wanted to smile but Kai’s rough grip on his jaw did not allow him. So instead, he pushed his head up a little and kissed Kai on the mouth. “I won’t. I’m all yours tonight.” He mumbled into Kai’s mouth and Kai grabbed his hand before pinning it to the mattress and clasped their hands together, covering Sehun’s mouth with his own. Everything that happened after that was as rough as it could get. Kai did not spare or waste another minute as he pulled Sehun’s jeans off and left him lying there with his tight boxers on to take his own pants off. Although he felt exposed, Sehun liked the feeling of being shy. The feeling of being submissive, the feeling of surrendering to someone who was just as strong as he was, just as weak as he was. Well, at least in this form they were both equal. In these moments Kai loved him with his eyes as much as his body, their thoughts and emotions mingling in the quiet moments between action and stillness. The cool room already felt warm. It was hard to hold back, to make the moment last. The instant Kai returned to kneel between his legs, Sehun was caught between the intoxication of the lust and extending a moment he never wanted to end. He swallowed, but his throat was so dry that it hurt. Kai looked deliriously gorgeous. His sets of taffy abs complimented his entire lithe frame. The hips looked strong and their bones were protruding ferociously. Sehun wanted to feel those hipbones cut him places that he could not even imagine. He was barely permitted more than a second to vet the thick, bronzish pink erection. His mouth went drier at the sight of that painfully purple cockhead. Kai grabbed the back of Sehun’s neck and hauled him up to sit so that his face was directly angled with Kai’s swollen cock. Sehun swallowed, looking up at Kai who looked flushed. He was embarrassed even if he were pretending to be the one in control. It was—after all—his first time. He was about to mate. He fisted Sehun’s hair as Sehun clasped his hand on Kai’s hip before placing a soft kiss on Kai’s abs right above the navel. He traced the line with kisses, all the way down to the base of Kai’s cock and glanced up at Kai again. Kai kept his eyes on Sehun, but his lips were quivering. Licking his smiling lips, Sehun knelt up. “I’ve lived for more than a few decades, Kai.” He whispered, wrapping his hands around Kai’s neck. “I never thought that I’ll… have this. With someone… I… want. Say it again.” he asked in the lowest voice possible, leaning in. “Say that you don’t want this because you imprinted on me. Say that it is not the only reason.”

“I only imprinted on you because I loved you.” Kai muttered and carefully cupped a side of Sehun’s face before kissing him. Their lips moved in a much slower pace this time, taking their time to savour every moment of the kiss. Kai’s arms came around Sehun’s body as he forced Sehun to lie back down. His kisses travelled all the way down to Sehun’s stomach before he hooked his fingers into the boxers but he did not pull them off at once. Instead, he fixated his eyes on Sehun’s face as he pressed his lips on Sehun’s cock over the fabric of the boxers. Clutching the end of the pillow, Sehun clenched his eyes tight when he felt Kai’s tongue wet the boxers. He slowly moved to Sehun’s crotch, between his thighs and sucked Sehun’s balls through the boxers, drenching them with his saliva.

“K-Kai…” he grunted out as Kai licked along the insides of the thighs. He knelt upright and ripped the boxers off, rendering Sehun stark naked, inside out. Sehun lied before him—vulnerable and willing to be damaged. Although he could not be completely true to Kai at this point, he wanted to give him everything that he could. Kai’s jaw was tight and his eyes were unmoving as he scanned Sehun through and through.

“Where did Jongin touch you?” was the first thing Kai said when he leaned forward, hovering right above Sehun. Sehun looked into his eyes, pulling his knees up and curled his arm around Kai’s waist, pressing a palm on the small of his back to pull Kai down until their bodies were adhered together. Sehun lost all sanity for a moment when he felt Kai’s burning hot hard cock press tight against his own crotch.

“Will you… knot with me?” Sehun asked with his chest tightened and eyes brimming with painful tears.

“It’s not a choice, Sehun.” Kai’s tone was suddenly gentle and he kissed Sehun’s neck.

“Am I worth it, Kai?” he buried his hand into Kai’s hair.

Kai got off Sehun abruptly and pushed Sehun to lie on his stomach before shifting to lie behind Sehun. Burying a part of his face into the pillow, Sehun whimpered out a moan as Kai kissed down his back, following the cleft of the back. Kai held onto Sehun’s hips as he yanked them so that Sehun was on his knees with his face pressed into the pillow. The second Kai’s lips were pressed on his tailbone, Sehun gritted his teeth. Kai was kneeling between Sehun’s knees as he placed tender kisses along the tailbone. “Kai. Mnhh.” Sehun sank his teeth into his bottom lip while the tip of Kai’s tongue skimmed the tailbone before he slowly dragged it lower, breaching the cleft. He was being surprisingly gentle ever since the mention of knotting. He kissed the hole before tonguing it a little. He paused when Sehun squirmed, spreading his knees further apart. Kai gave the ring of muscles a gentle rub with two of his fingers, earning a bestial moan from Sehun as his body surged with concupiscence. The lust he felt was unbelievable. Kai’s fingers slid from Sehun’s opening, straight down to his balls. Cupping them, Kai kissed all over his ass before his hand fisted Sehun’s cock. Gasping silently, Sehun blinked the tears away with Kai’s tongue stroking the puckered hole. For a moment, he wondered how it would feel to have that tongue inside him. Kai spat on his hand and rubbed the spit on Sehun’s hole.

“Sehun.” Kai moaned, drawing his lips up Sehun’s spine and pressed his chest on Sehun’s back, kissing the nape of Sehun’s neck with his fingers still rubbing the opening. Neither of them probably dared to turn and look at each other, but Kai pulled Sehun’s chin and their eyes met in a raving, incoherent arousal. “It will be painful.” Kai muttered against Sehun’s lips.

“Good. I want it… to be painful.” Sehun whispered back and their lips engaged themselves into a brief but sloppy kiss before Sehun. Kai lightly pushed the tip of his finger into the opening. Sehun’s entire body shuddered. It was both inviting and invading. It was not painful. Just uncomfortable. Kai’s finger easily slid in and out. Kai’s lips on the back of his neck was distracting, but it was not enough.

He was only going to get all of this once. This once.

“Sehun.” Kai panted, kissing along Sehun’s shoulder.

“Ugh.” The groan gushed out of Sehun’s mouth when Kai slid two fingers at once after smearing them with more spit. Kai pulled him for another kiss full on mouth and Sehun could only helplessly moan into Kai’s mouth as Kai’s fingers scissored his opening. The pain was inconsistent, which made it all more painful. Sehun healed quick, therefore the pain was new every few seconds. He could not get immune to the pain. It was all right. He wanted this pain to last before he will have to give Kai his choice back. A chance to mate again. And hopefully a chance to fall in love. Sehun's eyes welled with tears, responding to both the thought and Kai's fingers stretching him. 

 _“Well, of course there are loop holes. For instance if your mate dies, you’re free from the soul bind, you know?”_  Jongin's words rang in Sehun's ears.

All three of Kai’s fingers massaged the tender and moist insides of Sehun, curling themselves around bundles of nerves which triggered every possible pleasure the body could manage, injecting further lust and desire to have Kai inside him. Kai slid the fingers in and out in a steady pace, unlike his breath and kisses on Sehun’s neck which were frantic in a frenzy. He wanted Sehun now—Sehun could feel his urge. Sehun fisted his hand around the pillow and moaned into it when the pain and discomfort all shifted to pleasure that felt like a triumph of beating death. “Hh… Fuck.” Kai panted, pressing his lips on the back of Sehun’s shoulder before he pulled his fingers out. The sudden feeling of emptiness bothered Sehun, but only for a very short moment. The weight shifted on the mattress and Kai yanked Sehun’s arm to lay him on his back before he moved to kneel between Sehun’s knees. Bowing, Sehun sucked in a sharp gasp when he felt Kai’s hot breath on his stretched opening. Kai’s lips brushed all around the butt cleft, the butt cheeks before his eager lips touched the throbbing hole.

“Kai!” Sehun quietly moaned and clutched at Kai’s hair when Kai’s wet, warm tongue glided into him, slithering through the softened hole. Kai’s hands were burning on Sehun’s thighs and his tongue gently but mercilessly tasted the insides of Sehun. “Ah…” he helplessly let out, arching his back off the bed as his grip tightened around Kai’s hair with Kai’s tongue glissading smoothly in and out of him.

“Fuck.” Kai hissed under his breath and licked the outside of the opening before sucking and kissing the bruising skin around it. The instant his eyes looked up at Sehun’s, Sehun knew that this was for eternity. He might not be a Werewolf and he might not be bound to the ‘mating’ rule, but this will forever be with him.  _Haunt_  him. No, he cannot afford to think about it. Right now, this instant with Kai mattered the most. He did not know if he were even completely in love with Kai or when the feelings had even developed and erupted like this, but he realized that it was Kai all along. It was Kai’s aura that attracted him—although not in a good way. It was Kai’s scent that affected Sehun the most even if he and Jongin had the identical scent. Sehun could never distinguish their scent when he was used to Jongin’s scent. But now, the more he was with Kai, the more Kai’s scent allured him in a way Jongin’s never had.

Kai’s fiery lips climbed their way up Sehun’s abs and chest before they covered Sehun’s own trembling lips. He wanted to appear as weak as he could before Kai. He wanted Kai to dominate him in every way possible. The kiss was filled with distraction as Kai fingered him for one last time, hitting all the right spots. Sehun fisted Kai’s cock and for a moment, he was flabbergasted at how hard the pulsation of the length was. The hot shaft thrummed violently in Sehun’s hand as Kai ruthlessly kissed him. Kai’s cut-throat groan was swallowed by Sehun when he thumbed the leaking slit of Kai’s cockhead.

“Please.” Sehun whispered into the kiss. “I want to be… with you. I want you… Kai.”

Kai disconnected their lips to spit onto his palm and he carelessly stroked his swollen cock. Pinning his hands onto the pillow on either sides of Sehun’s head, Kai pushed himself up a little, gazing right into Sehun’s quivering eyes. “You’re already a part of me, Sehun.”

Sehun’s body brutally arched into Kai’s as he clung onto Kai’s back, digging his nails into the skin when the cockhead penetrated him. With his jaw unhinged Sehun met Kai’s glistening eyes in the dark. He was healing. Kai was stretching him all over again as he slowly slid in. “Kai…” he wheezed, letting Kai distract him a little with his lips. Kai kissed Sehun’s lower lip as gently as he could while Sehun locked his legs around Kai’s waist. When he first met Kai, Sehun already knew that he was about to lose entire world. Although at the time, he thought that Kai would try to destroy his world.  _How can you hang on to something so incomprehensible?_   _How can you keep pouring love into an abyss?_  An abyss. That was what Kai was. This town was not his home. This house was not his home. Kai was. Being in his arms, having him inflict a sort of beautiful pain was home. Sehun fell for Kai and he fell for Sehun just as hard.

In his embrace the world stopped still on its axis. Kai broke the kiss to gulp in some air before he stroked Sehun’s hair back, wiping his forehead. Right this instant, Sehun was as vulnerable as a mere human in Kai’s arms. If only he had found Kai some six decades ago. He would not be here. He would not be suffering. He would have had someone who cared about him. He would have had a family. He would have experienced love.

Kai almost pulled out of him before he slid back in, hitting Sehun right where it pleased. Sehun grunted, tightening his arms around Kai and buried his sank his teeth into Kai’s shoulder as Kai began to thrust. A bead of tear trickled down the corner of Sehun’s eye as Kai picked up the pace of his thrusts. Outside, the night was doing its job. The moon under siege by stars seemed to lighten the night bringing forth stars that shone and hung in the blackness. The never ending blackness consumed everything. But in this room, on this bed, Kai was igniting a light. Deep within Sehun. His lips left their mark all over Sehun’s face as Sehun kissed along the side of Kai’s neck, clenching his jaw. Kai’s cock drilled through him, causing him both pain and pleasure at the same time. Kai’s entire body was drenched in sweat and Sehun could not help but enjoy every inch of Kai’s sweaty skin that was touching him. He filled Sehun, wholly. And the scarce moans that he let out drove Sehun straight to insanity. Although the night was silent outside, in this room, Sehun made the night scream with his cries and whimpers.

Kai’s hand slipped down before it fisted Sehun’s cock. He pumped it in sync with his thrusts, letting Sehun feel every ounce of the pleasure that he was feeling—maybe a little more. “Sehun.” Kai heaved, desperately kissing Sehun’s neck as his thrusts became ruthless and unbelievably hard. His cock slammed into Sehun regardless of anything. “You’re… throbbing.” He gasped, grabbing Sehun’s hair and shoved his tongue into Sehun’s mouth. Sehun was throbbing. He was throbbing all over Kai’s cock, clutching it. And he knew that Kai loved it. Sehun pressed his palms onto Kai’s sweaty back when Kai began to moan. “Se… hun…” he pulled up, clenching the pillow on the sides of Sehun’s head again. Sehun saw the fire in Kai’s eyes. It was as if he were suffering some sort of pain. His face was flushed with blood and his mouth was wide open, sobbing for air. Sehun’s eyes bulged out as he dragged his nails down Kai’s back until it bled. The walls of his opening and insides contracted, stretching further. Kai was swelling.

And then came the pain again. Only ten times worse. Searing fiery bursts pulsated around his opening, intensifying with each dragging second, jarring and brutal. Sehun let out a gasp and hung onto Kai. The pain amplified, the bloody muscle quivered, Sehun’s consciousness almost ebbed. Black mists swirled at the edges of his mind, wanting to draw him into oblivion. “Ah, Kai!” he unintentionally cried with his fangs almost emerging from his gums. The pain was an icy wind choking him, making a noose around his neck. It was savage, like bitter blasts cut right to his bones and gripped his brain in its freezing claws.

“Sehun. Sehun.” Kai panted in a haste, cupping a side of Sehun’s face. “Shh… shit. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” He kissed all over Sehun’s cheek before sliding an arm under Sehun and curled it around his body. “I promise you, I will hold you. It’ll get better. Please. Trust me.” His whispers were louder that his own cries in Sehun’s ears. “I will protect you. I will live for you. You will be my… priority.” He swelled a ring for every word that he said. “I promise.”

Everything calmed and quieted down around them. The world stopped spinning. Kai was locked inside Sehun and the latter was close to seeing Death on the other side of his eyelids. Kai was making his promise. He was knotting.

“If I ever give up on you, then I...” he trailed off. “If I ever grow cold come find me, because then I’m truly lost. If I ever recoil at your touch I’ve harmed my soul and need your forgiveness. Sehun… with you around me I will always find my way home, for when fear sets my compass spinning, it matters not which direction I take, only that I keep on walking.”

Sehun closed his eyes and gulped, trying to feel anything but the excruciating pain.

“Sehun.” Kai called, this time, completely disheartened. “Don’t… do this.”

“No.” Sehun’s eyes flashed open and he cupped the sides of Kai’s face with tears brimming in his eyes as he could not adapt to the pain. “Kai… I can…” was all that he could manage to bring out. Kai’s soft lips brushed Sehun’s and he kissed all over Sehun’s face, slowly, gently before he rested his face in the crook of Sehun’s neck, collapsing completely onto Sehun. His breathing was evened shortly after and he was now resting on top of Sehun, gathering his strength. He did not even turn a hair. This moment, Sehun was holding Kai who was not physically weak, but emotionally. He was mating with the one guy he probably thought he would not get. Sehun felt every bit of the melancholia that Kai was silently going through. The least that Sehun could do right now was endure this pain and give Kai what he wanted. At least for now.

He will get to mate again. But Sehun will never get to fall like this again.

“Kai…” he muttered, holding the back of Kai’s head. Kai did not bring his face up from Sehun’s neck. More than a few minutes had passed and they probably had to stay this way—locked in every sense—for more than just few minutes. Could a ruthless and belligerent Berserker like Kai be this tame at his most vulnerable? Sehun almost smiled before he realized that he will never get to see or hold Kai like this again. “You… You’ll be mated after this.”

Kai lifted his head with a frown etched on his face. “ _We_ will.”

Sehun smiled despite the beautiful torture he was suffering. “I can’t… Jongin… said that knotting counts as mating. I can’t… respond to it the way… Werewolves would.”

“Jongin is… wrong.” Kai said calmly and kissed him. “Knotting or not, I will be mated with you. By heart. By soul.”

“You think we would be doing this if you didn’t imprint on me?” he asked, choking back on the tears.

Kai was mum for a moment as a bead of sweat dribbled down his temple. He was throbbing harder by the second inside Sehun. “You wouldn’t have loved me even then.”

Sehun’s lips parted as he gaped at Kai. “I…”

“You can’t deny it, can you? That you don’t love me. I’d understand if you’re still in love with Jongin. Or if this is all just… just… nothing. I still don’t know what your angle is, Sehun. All that I do know is that every part of my body and heart wants to trust you. But not my mind. And right now, I’m giving you everything that I can. This is all that I have. This is all that I will ever have. I’m not some Count’s heir. I’m not loaded like you. And I… won’t live forever.” He rested his forehead on Sehun’s and panted, eyes closed. “I’m not even an Alpha. Isn’t that the reason you even went out with Jongin? I am… absolutely useless to you. And…” he smiled against Sehun’s lips. “I will only destroy you. Ruin you. I already have many times.”

“Kai—”

“No. I have… feelings, too, Sehun. I can fall in love, too.”

“I want you.”

Kai did not move and his lips remained on Sehun’s. “I want you, too.” He pressed their lips together and Sehun for a moment, lost himself into the kiss, forgetting about the pain. Something told Sehun that all this gentleness was not going to last long.

Kai slowly began to move his hips and Sehun’s grunts were muffled by his mouth. With a short gasp, Kai withdrew from the kiss and straightened up, pulling Sehun with him, seating him on his lap. As he enveloped his arms around Sehun’s body, Sehun wrapped his around Kai’s neck, resuming the raving kiss. Kai’s hand pumped Sehun’s cock while Sehun began to rock his hips to ride Kai’s cock. The kiss alone was enough to make Sehun reach his climax and when he did, the room exploded with his moans as white ropes of semen shot all over Kai’s abs and chest before they were gluing Sehun’s chest to Kai’s.

Kai paused for a minute to let Sehun digest his comedown. Licking his lips, Sehun dragged his fingertips down Kai’s chest that was smeared with his come. Locking their lips again, Kai carefully laid Sehun back on the bed before he pinned both Sehun’s hands to the pillows, lacing their fingers. “Ugh!” he growled, throwing his head back and Sehun almost saw stars when the hot wet semen burst inside him. 

* * *

 

“Jongin? Hey.” The room’s door clicked open before there was a subtle knock on it. The world was as silent as if it had ended in the night. Last night to be more precise. The sun was still resolutely below the horizon and the forest was as dark as some old-school black and white movie. As Jongin closed his eyes he felt the heady pull of his dreams—his  _nightmares_ , beckoning him back to play. The coolness of the early morning was deceptive; the sun had barely risen and this altitude was always cooler. There was no light struggling to get past the grime on the blinds when Jongin unlidded his eyes to the saccharine sound of his mother’s voice. “Are you up?” He did not lift his head or turn around to meet his mother who was already standing in the room. Instead, he kept his back facing his mother as his face was almost buried into the pillow that was dry and shrivelled with his tears.

_“Jongin.” Adrian rasped, steadying Lenz in his arms._

_“Are you still leaving?” Jongin asked in a haste._

_Adrian blinked. “Nobody else knows, Jongin.” He muttered under his breath. “Yes. Why?”_

_For a moment, Jongin fixated his eyes on the baby who began to play with Adrian’s necktie, resting his forehead on his father’s cheek. Licking his lips, Jongin lowered his eyes to the grass beneath his shoes. “Take me… with you.” he uttered under his breath. There was not a reply until Jongin looked up at Adrian. He noticed the familiar disappointment in Adrian’s eyes._

_“No.”_

_The single syllable ripped Jongin’s heart apart all over again. “No?” he barely heard his own voice._

_“What happened?”_

_Jongin looked around him. There was no one near them. “Adrian… I want to leave.”_

_“You wouldn’t want to leave just out of the sudden, Jongin.” He frowned. “What happened? What about Sehun?”_

_“We broke up.”_

_Adrian blinked his eyes. But the disappointment only began to ooze out of them. Lenz curled his chubby hand around Adrian’s necktie and cooed something before pulling away from his father, reaching out for Jongin. Jongin almost held his hands out before Adrian held his baby back. “Is that why you want to leave? Because you broke up with him?”_

_“I want to leave with you.”_

_“Yeah. Because you broke up. I’m not some alternative for you to have whenever you please, Jongin. And you’re just going to abandon your pack? Your brother?”_

_“I’m leaving because of my brother, okay?! You and I both know that he will be a far better Alpha than I in every sense.”_

_“But he is not the Alpha. You are.”_

_“Stop it. It’s not like you didn’t abandon your responsibility. You ran away with your lover without bothering about the pack. So don’t give me that shit.”_

_“I left because I couldn’t afford to be with you! You are the reason I had to leave! It will always be you who’s the reason for what I’ve become.”_

_“Adrian—”_

_“I did not ask to imprint on you. I couldn’t bring shame to my family and I couldn’t… be with you. Mate with you because I fucking didn’t know that you even liked…” he trailed off with a long breath. “If there is someone to be blamed for where we all are right now, Jongin, it’s you.”_

_Just when Lenz reached down and grabbed Jongin’s necktie, Adrian began to strut past him, wearing a frown that Jongin had never seen on him before. Balling his hands into fists, he glanced back at Adrian and his heart slowly sank when he saw him smiling painfully at Krystal who tore Lenz away from him after placing a gentle kiss on Adrian’s cheek. “How’s college?” asked Adrian, latching his hand on the small of Krystal’s back as he ushered her out of the graveyard._

The weight on the edge of the mattress shifted before Jongin felt his mother’s hand on his arm. “Jongin. What’s going on with you and your brother?” she asked in the lowest, kindest voice possible. “Jongin?”

Sniffling, he shifted to lie on his other side and scooted to rest his head on his mother’s lap. He still did not dare to look at her. Neither of them said anything as his mother began to stroke his hair.

 

* * *

 

A beacon of light pierced through the mullioned panes of glass, bathing the black and white tile floor in a crisscross of iridescent colour; illuminating the darkened room. The sunlight beamed through the white blinds, presenting the morning sun against Kai’s sculpted face. For once, his morning was not grey, but by soothing lavender and brilliant amber. The colours merged into neon pink and peach. Sehun bit his lower lip as he leaned himself against the doorframe of his room with his hands snuck into the pockets of his sweatpants, watching Kai sleep, sprawled messily on the bed on his front with the white covers sloppily draped over his back. He looked exhausted even as he slept. His tousled hair screamed sex. The nail marks had faded on his back but the blood stain remained in eight long narrow lines, screaming hard sex. And the thick smell that hung in the room screamed the pleasure that they both gave each other last night. For a long moment, Sehun wondered how spectacular it would have been for him if he did not heal so quick, washing all the pain from his body. He wanted to feel the little soreness in the morning. Kai probably still had the fatigue although not as strong and it was just mesmerizing to watch him sleep like this—tired and complete.

He stirred on the bed before his eyelashes faintly batted against his lids when he blinked his eyes open, meeting Sehun’s smile at once. “Hey, you.” he rasped in a hoarse, sleepy voice which drove Sehun insane for a second. He pulled himself away from the doorframe and crawled into the bed before Kai’s arm slithered around his waist. They paused to stare into each other’s eyes, then Sehun ran his fingers through Kai’s messy hair. He saw nothing different in Kai’s eyes. They were still…  _him._  Still with passion, care and caution. “Did I hurt you last night?” he whispered as Sehun mounted him, kneeling on either sides of him.

“No.” Sehun let out, letting his lips ghost over Kai’s. “I’d go through that… all over again.”

Kai’s palms burned on the sides of Sehun’s torso as their lips touched. He kissed Sehun’s lower lip slowly, taking his sweet time, savouring every bit of the lip before he suckled it and bit it, grazing his teeth gently over it. A rough moan betrayed Sehun’s throat when Kai pulled the lip between his teeth before releasing it. “How did it feel?” he breathed against Sehun’s abused lips and he kissed the corner of Sehun’s lips, the cheek, the chin and the skin below Sehun’s bottom lip as Sehun struggled to suppress the moan or keep his hands to himself. Especially with Kai’s hands sliding down his back, bordering at the waistline of the sweatpants.

“It felt like… I was… whole.” Sehun clenched his eyes tight when Kai’s lips touched his forehead. The instant Kai came inside him was never to be forgotten. It was vivid. Arresting. Eternal. He wanted to tell Kai how outstanding it felt to have him fill him like that. Or how painful it was to have Kai go to sleep on top of him, face buried in his chest and him… buried inside Sehun.

“I was whole, too.” Kai mumbled, kissing along his jawline. “Let’s go somewhere.”

“Somewhere?” Sehun pulled up and looked into Kai’s droopy eyes. “Where?”

“Anywhere.” He smirked. “I just want to be with you today. All day long.”

“You… want to talk about everything?” Sehun frowned.

“No. No. After last night, Sehun, I… I just want to know you. No more secrets.”

“Does that mean we’re an… item now?” he grinned, biting his lip.

“Are we not? I heard you broke up with Jongin.”

“He… broke up with me.” He got off Kai and flumped on the edge of the bed, turning his back to Kai. What was really the point of this short happiness if by the end of the day, none of this was going to matter? No. This will be the only thing that will matter. Sehun snapped out of it when he felt Kai’s butterfly kisses on the back of his shoulder as his hand glided over Sehun’s waist and was pressed against Sehun’s stomach.

“Come on.” Kai abruptly got off the bed and Sehun turned his head halfway around only to get his senses knocked dead when his eyes landed on Kai’s golden body that was bathing in the morning sunlight. “I want to bring you someplace.”

Sehun rose to his feet and made his way to the closet to throw on some clothes. He was not going to waste another minute either. He will need to be gone before Vance returned. Before he could betray Vance’s trust. Or Kai’s trust. Which he cannot afford. He could not imagine a life without either of them, and a life with both of them no longer seemed plausible. Especially not if Vance wanted to create a hybrid. A monster who will be nothing but his henchman.

 

 

 

The road laid before them like a tarmac ribbon; albeit, one that had been worn over time. A white line ran down the center, relatively unbroken compared to the scarred and potholed concrete. The mountains lay in two great line like the spines of the land. It was as if long ago they were a great beast, only to lie down one day and never get up. Perhaps the beast fell into an enchanted sleep, perhaps its soul was still in there. The range was high to the west and low to the east, curling at the end like a tail. They were the reason this land both so lush and dark. To cross them the clouds must go high and meet the colder air up there, then they dumped their rain on this down, every drop. Sehun could not help but smile as he peered out the window of Kai’s SUV, gazing at the dense trees that framed the road on either sides.

Beside him, Kai was smirking although he kept his eyes on the road and hands on the steering wheel and gear stick. “Stop staring at me.” He scoffed and Sehun felt the blood fill his cheeks.

“I… wasn’t.” he glanced away. He did not know what he was anticipating, but he saw no difference in Kai. He kind of thought that the mating would make Kai reel for him, or at least that was the idea that everyone had put in his head. Maybe it was because Kai was a Berserker. “Kai?”

“Hm.”

“When did you… start to like me… this way?”

Kai was mum for a moment as the smirk on his lips faltered. And then, he muttered, “When I first kissed you.”

“That night you bit me.”

“Yeah.” He licked his lips and swallowed while Sehun watched his Adam’s apple bob in trepidation. “That was my reason. What’s yours?”

“Huh?”

“What made you like me?”

“Oh.” He rubbed the back of his neck, shifting his gaze back to the trees that zoomed past him. “I always wanted someone… to protect me. To be there for me. To… I don’t know. Make me feel safe. I never felt safe around anyone. That night, when you saved me from my father, that was the first time anyone had gone to that extent to protect me.”

“Jongin would have done the same thing.”

“No. That was not what triggered these… feelings within me, Kai.” He faced him with a frown. “You were… hurt. You almost died.”

Kai pursed his lips as his brows furrowed together. “That was embarrassing. I thought I was strong enough. But in reality, your blood healed me.”

“Yeah.”

“And you never really needed me to save you the night I bit you.”

“No. But… I’m glad you did.” He extended an arm and laid his hand on Kai’s thigh. “I’m glad that everything that happened between us had happened, Kai. It wasn’t Jongin who almost died that night, although he would have taken the risk. But it wasn’t him. It was you.”

Kai pulled the vehicle aside and turned the engine down. “Your blood healed me.” He asked out of the sudden. “I’m a Werewolf. Can your blood turn me into a… Vampire?”

Sehun felt like he had taken a blow to the head. For a moment, he sat there, frozen, gaping at Kai’s merciless scowl. “What?”

“Answer me, Sehun.”

He quickly shook his head. “No. I’m just the Count’s heir. Only the Count can do that. Why are you asking me this?”

“Hm. So the heir becomes the Count when the Count dies?”

Sehun gulped. He suddenly felt like someone was choking him. “Y-yes. I’ll inherit his prerogatives. But…” he nervously smiled. “Vance… isn’t gonna die. I won’t let him.”

“Does he really mean that much to you?” he frowned.

“Kai, he gave me this life. I’m bound to him.”

“Get down.” Kai spat quickly before he rushed out of the SUV himself. “Let’s not talk about him.” he smiled and held his hand out when Sehun exited the car.

Taking the hand, Sehun laced their fingers. “But why are you asking?”

“You’ll soon know. Come on.” He pulled Sehun into the trees of the mountain’s foot.

“Where are we going?”

“Oh come on, Sehun. You’ll see it when you see it.”

Sehun’s stomach was full of lead; his feet wanted to be set in concrete; his mind was worryingly empty. His senses were alarmingly sharp as he followed Kai up the hill. He came to an abrupt halt and pulled his hand free when the light stench of blood stung his nose from meters away. His guts knotted as his lungs burned. He looked up at Kai in a sort of dreadful confusion. It was Vance’s blood. Kai’s jaw was locked and his eyes were narrowed in a scowl. Staggering a step back, Sehun gaped at Kai when an amalgamation of scents surrounded them. Wolves. Vampires. Blood. But one of the scents stood out the best. His Nightmare.

He spun around, ready to bolt out of there but was stunned to a paralysis when he saw the grey wolf behind him. That was before his eyes darted to all the sixteen wolves that emerged from the trees, all slowly edging closer. Sehun turned back to face Kai with bloodshot eyes. “Why?” was all that he could summon from his cold stomach.

The Nightmare, the Hell’s scent diverted Sehun’s attention at once and he spun to meet his father but before he could even spot him, a black stake struck him in the abdomen, sending him flying back until he was slammed against a tree. Sehun was too numb to scream but the stake ripped his stomach apart before he saw the man in the black coat show himself with a victorious smirk on his face. “And yet, we meet again.” the man snorted, pushing his black-greyish hair out of his face.

“No…” Sehun gasped as he ripped the stake out of his stomach and jolted to the first exit he saw between the wolves but that backfired when Kai caught him by the neck and lifted him before slamming him on the ground until Sehun felt the back of his skull crack. Kai tore the stake from Sehun’s hand and the moment he drove it through Sehun’s chest, missing the heart by an inch, Sehun gave in. His eyes rolled back and he saw nothing but white for a moment.

“Good work.” He heard his father say.

Sehun felt his body being lifted from the ground. He was only vaguely aware of Kai’s heat before he was hurled back to the ground. “Se… hun.” That voice. Sehun’s eyes flashed open and they shot to Vance who laid on the ground some feet away with stakes pierced through all over his body. Vance was bathed in blood. Kai walked over to him and grabbed Vance’s hair at the back before yanking it until Vance was kneeling.

“Now we’re getting somewhere, are we not?” said his father. “Bleed him just as you’ve bled that Count.” He ordered.

“Kai.” Sehun called before coughing out blood. “Why…” his eyes betrayed him once again when rivulets of tears spilled down the corners of his eyes.

“My pack before anything else, Sehun. I’d rather side with the man who wants what I want.” Kai spat, shoving Vance back down.

“And.” His father chimed. “When you both are done with, guess who will be Count. It wasn’t easy to get this bastard, though. He put up such a fight. But even a Count cannot handle his own heir and a dozen of Werewolves at the same time. Especially not when he is poisoned.”

Sehun glanced at Vance again. “Vervain.” He breathed out. He must have been poisoned with Vervain. Vervain was just like Wolfsbane, only that it was for Vampires. Sehun had thought that Vervain plants were extinct. Vance made sure that he got rid of them centuries ago.

“It was not easy to get hold of it.” He scoffed. “He’s weak. We’ve bled him out, enough to make a hundred hybrids, Sehun. And obviously, he will die. None of them will be sired to him.”

Sehun gawked at Kai in pain. “That’s… why…” he choked on blood as he curled his hand around the stake, wanting to pull it out but that was when his father pressed a boot on the top of the stake, pushing it deeper into Sehun’s chest. “Kai, don’t trust him! You will be sired to the Count! Not Vance! Even if he dies, you will be sired to this asshole!”

“I think at this point, Kai will be more than willing to listen to me than you.”

"I'll take my chances." Kai spat out and strutted over to Sehun. "You still underestimate me, Sehun." the sole of his boot crushed a side of Sehun's face, sending him into oblivion.

* * *

His eyes were forced open. He woke like his hooked up the mains. No sleepiness, no slow warming up. Within seconds of realizing he was unconscious he was on his feet, eyes wide, dreams not just forgotten but erased. Sehun adjusted his eyesight to the darkness that was laid before him. The forest robbed him of one sense and heightened the others. It was disorientating to be almost blinded but his ears were alert.  _Too_  alert. Even the soft susurration of the branches felt heavy in the ears. The sense of smell was sensitized, the loam in the earth and the decomposing leaves made the atmosphere close and thick. The blackness nurtured a sense of claustrophobia inside him even though the forest stretched unbroken for miles. The bare branches spiked into the sky— no sign of life to be found anywhere. It was so dark. Sehun’s vision was slightly blurred and his body was numb. There were only small sounds of rustling bushes and the howl of the wind. He couldn’t swallow. That was when he realized the uncomfortable prickling sensation on the side of his neck. Everything became lucid one by one, slowly. He drank in the feedback of all his senses. Aside from his own subtle moans of pain and discomfort there was nothing to be heard and the woods were simply too dark to see much at all. He stared, unable to move, as blood dripped from his wounds. Wounds. Sehun clenched his eyes for a moment before glancing down at his body that was tied against a tree. His arms were stretched back and around the trunk, tied together at the other side of the tree. The rope burned his wrist. It was laced with Vervain. The sight of the horror was worse than the pain itself. Horrific. His body was pierced by at least thirty stakes,  _black_  stakes. His father’s stakes. A few at the abdomen, a few at the limbs, one at the side of the neck, one in the chest, some on the side of his torso and shoulders. The loam of the forest floor beneath him had soaked in his blood. If he weren’t tied to the tree, Sehun doubted that he would be able to even kneel. It was not his blood that held his attention.

Bringing his head up with great effort, Sehun looked around him before his tired, blurry eyes fell on the man that was tied against the tree some feet away.  _Vance._  His throat wanted to scream, but it was impossible. All that was left of the blood that had once flowed thick and scarlet in his veins was clasped in his callused fingers. Sehun felt the stakes on his forearms and the blood that was trickling between his fingers. He wriggled his wrists, but to no avail. Vance had his head hung but Sehun could not tell if he were conscious or not. A dried patch of red that had wicked into the hem of Vance’s grey sweater suggested that he been bled for long. Sehun felt a mental blow to his skull as he took in all the wooden stakes and werewolf bites that were preventing Vance from healing. “Va…” he croaked out, but Vance did not look up. Vance was also standing in a pool of already congealing blood, the same smell as a slaughterhouse Sehun’s unseeing eyes were suddenly wide with the fear of their final moments. The once scarlet blood that had oozed down the Vance’s neck in thick droplets had quickly blackened in the August heat even in this dark night. The blood that had flowed so freely from the severed neck now lay in pools around Vance and soaked into his sweater like some garish Halloween dummy. But this one was real. It smelled like an abattoir. The dark red blood makes its way out of Sehun’s body. It oozed between the spaces between his fingers. His vision became blurrier as his red shirt turned darker and all that Sehun could see was the scarlet blood that once flowed in his veins. Each drop of blood slowly took away the life in him, leaving him pale—paler—and weak, yet defying death. Sehun wondered if Vance felt the same way. But he looked different. His shirt was blood stained, but his blood was not as scarlet like Sehun’s. It was too dark for red, too light for maroon. Sehun did not know if there were a name for that colour, or maybe it did not matter. Because now, he could think of only one thing— when the last drop of blood carried away the last bit of life left in him, he can finally be with Vance. As the life fluid drained out of him in its garish red, his skin took on the pallor of a corpse. He could still hear, but he could control none of his body. His eyes fell droopy before the shut completely.

Then he heard the slow hum. A quite drone carried by the wind. He could not open his eyes, but he knew it was Vance’s voice. It was a very familiar tune. “Raindrops on roses and… whiskers on kittens. Bright copper kettles… and warm… woollen mittens… brown paper packages… tied up with strings. These are a few of my favourite things.” He heard Vance’s whispered singing. “Little corpses… trying to greet me “Spiders that… nibble my toes… cantaloupe ants and evil cow rings, these are a… few of my favourite things.”

Sehun smiled before an exhausted laugh escaped his bloodied lips.

“A corpse… hanging… by the noose… from the lamp.” Vance chimed in an exhausted whisper.

He was hallucinating.

Even Sehun’s lidded eyes could not stop the unconscious tears that began to trickle down his cheeks. He was not even sure if they were tears or blood. He was stuck. He never will be loved. It was stupid of him to keep on expecting such a thing from men who only knew how to use him and toss him away.

 

_“It is your 18 th birthday, Sehun. You will have to eat some.” His mother urged, shoving a wooden bowl of porridge into his face. Sehun shot to his feet and he flashed a lopsided grin at his mother._

_“You and Tia have it, mother.” He tore the bowl away from his mother’s hand and placed it on the table before Tia who looked up at him with a baby smile. He mirrored her smile and pulled his mother into a hug. “It is my birthday. Thus, I am asking you only for one thing. Let me go to the forest.”_

_“With that rich child? Sehun, you will need to stop going around with him.” she said with a frown etched on her brows and lips as Sehun hurried to grab the muffler. “It is pouring outside! Imagine what your father would do if he finds out you’ve befriended that well-off boy!”_

_Sehun still smiled, wrapping the scarf around his neck. “Mother, that well-off boy is my only friend. And he is the kindest soul.”_

_“He is a man your father loathes.”_

_“Is there a man that father does not loath in this village? Everyone is better than him, and he hates them all.”_

_“You will not speak that way before your sister.”_

_“She knows what kind of bastard her father is, mother.”_

_“Sehun!”_

_Shaking his head, Sehun ripped the door open. “I’m leaving.”_

_The sun was still burning even in the rain. The heavy clouds were failing to block the sun today. Sehun did not bother to cover his head as he broke into a jog towards the forest. He struggled up the hill with rainwater dribbling down his eyes. He did not have much time left. He would have to make to work before evening. Being a shopboy by day and a matter used for abuse by night did not permit him much time to indulge in what he loved. Like the clouds, the canopies of the trees were failing to block not only the sun but the rain as well. By the time Sehun reached the top of the hill, the middle of the forest, he was soaked. He panted for air, but his breathing quickened in excitement rather than in exhaustion. He frantically looked around the spot—the usual spot. One tall tree to the left. One taller tree to the right. Dried vines straight ahead. Dandelion stalks scattered on the ground. This was their spot._

_He was blinded out of the blue when a pair of hands snaked around his head from behind and covered his eyes. Sehun let out a puff of laugh and clung onto the wrists of the hands as he felt a warm breath on his nape, intermingled with the rain. “Why are you not wrapped well?!” the hands were pulled away and Sehun blinked his eyes rapidly to adjust his eyesight. That was before he felt the heavy coat on his shoulders._

_“You will be cold now.” Sehun whined as he turned around to face Vance._

_“I can handle it.” He smirked. “Happy birthday.” Vance clasped his hands on either sides of Sehun’s face and leaned in before his lips touched the rain drops on Sehun’s lower lip. Letting out a shaky breath against Vance’s lips, Sehun curled his hands around Vance’s shirt pulled him into a deeper kiss._

_“Where is my gift?” he whispered, pulling away from the kiss._

_Smiling smugly, Vance took a step back, pulling Sehun’s hands off his shirt. “Remember when I promised I will take you away from here?”_

 

Sehun’s eyes flashed open. It was him. All the holes in the memory. Vance did it. He made Sehun forget.

“He’s up.” the voice was familiar and it pounded in Sehun’s ears for a moment before it rang, forcing a jarring sensation down his spine. Adrian.

“What the fuck?!”

Kai.

Sehun did not have the energy to raise his head but he knew Kai was approaching him. He felt it. “Sehun.” Kai gasped before Sehun felt a warm hand touch a side of his face. It stung. But not as much as the pain when Kai pulled the stake on his neck out. A short grunt gushed out of Sehun’s mouth as Kai dropped the stake to the ground. “Hey, hey.” He cupped Sehun’s face and held it up. “Look at me, Sehun. Sehun?” Sehun felt Kai’s thumbs wipe the blood or tears off his cheekbones but he could barely hold his head up and he ended up hanging his head. “Sehun? Were you telling the truth when you said that even when Vance dies, we will be sired to the next Count?”

Sehun parted his lips. His stomach churned and his lungs burned. He could not get the words out without a tremendous amount of effort and pain. “Ff… Fuck… yourself.”

Kai’s hands dropped from his face. The next thing Sehun knew was the rope around his hands being untied. As soon as his hands were released, Sehun dropped to his knees with a loud thud. His eyes lazily landed on the stake that Kai had dropped and without even thinking for another second, he reached his hand out to grab out. But Kai beat him to it when he kicked the stake away. “Get up.” he yanked Sehun up to stand by his arm.

Gritting his teeth, Sehun moved as quick as he could and ripped a stake out from his abdomen. Kai almost caught Sehun’s wrist but Sehun was still able to move quicker than him as he plunged the stake right through Kai chest and shoved him back. A loud cry was all that Kai gave as he collapsed to the ground. Sehun knew he would probably die if he used up the remaining energy that he had, but he didn’t care at this point. Adrian started for him at once. “Stop, Sehun! We’re trying to—”

Without budging, Sehun jolted to Vance and ripped the rope around his wrists with one ferocious tug. That was enough for Vance to pull the stake out from his own chest and he hurled it like a dart right at Adrian. The stake struck Adrian at the upper abdomen, sending him flying back. Vance pulled a couple of stakes out before bolting to Adrian and he did not waste another second as he forced his bleeding forearm onto Adrian’s mouth. As soon as his blood had oozed down Adrian’s throat, Vance grabbed the man’s head and twisted it brutally and fast until his neck snapped. Sehun fell to the ground as he vaguely heard Kai growling, getting back on his feet.

“You’ve clearly underestimated me.” Vance spat and darted forward. Kai was ready to transform but he was a little too late when Vance used the stakes on his own body to defend himself, by shooting them towards Kai’s chest, again and again. Sehun was not sure why every blow that Kai took hurt himself more than it probably hurt Kai. The last stake had Kai pinned to a tree and Vance pressed his wrist to Kai’s mouth before he yanked one of the stakes out of Kai’s chest. Kai’s eyes bulged out as he swallowed the forced blood. Vance hurled Kai to the ground before kneeling on one knee and drove the stake right through Kai’s heart. Sehun’s head exploded for an instant when he realized Vance had just killed Kai. Vance got rid of the rest of the stakes and took Kai’s arm before sinking his teeth into the wrist. Sehun could not see that colour that filled Vance’s face again, but he was certain that Vance was healing. As he rose to his feet, he pulled the stake out of Kai’s chest and glanced over at Adrian. “And now, you two work for me.” He spat before he made his way to Sehun, twirling the stake in his hand. “This is what happens when you make friends with your enemies.” He grunted as he lifted Sehun into his arms and brought him to lean against a tree. As he carefully pulled the stakes out of Sehun’s body, Sehun tried to not to cry, but his cheeks were already stained with tears. When he had pulled all the stakes out, Vance held Sehun’s face in his hands. “We can’t get out of here. The wolves have this place surrounded and I’m not strong enough. We’ve got company. Stay awake. I’m going to try and stall.” He whispered and stood up, turning his back to Sehun before the wolves showed up along with the Hell, Sehun’s monstrous father. “Can’t we just talk this out? Like civilized people?”

The grey-haired man gaped at Kai and Adrian’s corpses as the wolves began to howl.

“Sorry. I do not happen to speak wolf.” Vance scoffed, taking a step away from Sehun. “I wonder whose orders you’ll be taking now. A Vampire’s?” he jerked his chin at Sehun’s father.

“You’ve killed a Werewolf. You’ve gone against their treaty.” His father said in a shaky voice.

“Right. I guess I did.” He pushed his bloody hair back and clenched his fists. Sehun threw his head back on the tree as his wounds began to close.

“He has killed your pack members!” the man shouted at the wolves. “With or without your Alpha’s orders, you will avenge your pack!”

Sehun tried to get onto his feet when the wolves started towards Vance. He dragged his feet to stand behind Vance. One of the deep brown furred wolves broke into a sudden gallop, shooting straight for Vance but before Vance even lifted a finger, a black wolf threw itself between them and the next thing Sehun saw was the two ghastly creatures pouncing one another. Sehun’s head spun as it registered to him that the black wolf was twice as big as the brown one. He recognized the black beast. Adrian.

“This fight is between you and me. Fight me if you dare.” Vance called out to Sehun’s father when Adrian had won in forcing the brown wolf to retreat.

“I will kill you and that son of a bitch.” Sehun jumped a little when his father zoomed to Vance without a warning and everything stopped around them for a moment when Kai grabbed hold of his father’s neck, jolting between Vance and him out of the blue.

“I don’t think so.” He growled before everything turned to hell the instant he brutish and viciously sank his teeth—his new fangs—into Sehun’s father’s neck. His hand was driven through the man’s chest, breaking the ribs before Kai ripped the heart out. Everything happened in the blink of an eye before Kai gave the man a hard stomp on his empty chest. Sehun’s Nightmare fell back on the forest floor, heartless as ever. “It was nice doing business with you.” Kai spat and tossed the full heart onto Sehun’s father’s body.

* * *

 

His soul was a pure spark of love but his rages were more than Jongin’s heart can bare. Kai never drew him in with a sweetness Jongin had never found before, something so strong he wanted to feel it even when they were apart. But those times Kai came back so angry, yet unable to know the real cause, he broke Jongin in ways he had never imagined possible. Kai turned Jongin’s safe haven into his hell, his mind into its own prison, he broke his heart and now Jongin must recoil to protect the shattered pieces that remain. He lifted his head from the desk and gazed out the window, into the night. Raising his hand to the glass, Jongin dragged his fingertips along it with his eyes brimming tears again. The desolation he felt was all consuming. His mind became an icy wasteland, the wind howled in his soul and wrapped icy tentacles around his heart so tightly it almost stopped beating. Jongin shoved his chair back and jolted up with his heart racing miles per minute. Sobbing for air, he almost dropped to the floor as he hastily turned around. Freezing before the mirror, Jongin clasped his hand around his neck when the oxygen supply was suddenly cut short to his lung. What was happening?! He was in so much pain his complexion was ashen. His natural golden skin had sunken in tone to something so lifeless it scared him just to even look at himself. His eyes closed and he sucked himself into a deeper place to cope. It felt like his heart might burst at any moment now. “M-mom!” he croaked out, hurtling for the door before his shin slammed against the bed’s leg and he crashed the floor with his guts burning in agony. “ _Kai_.”

Pain seared through his abdomen better than a branding iron, his mind conceding to the torment, unable to bring a thought to completion. Without meaning to his body curled into something fatal, something primeval and all the while the pain burned and radiated.

It was not his pain. It was his brother’s. His other half.

“No!” Jongin cried as his vision turned hazy.

“Jongin!” his mother and father burst into the room before they dropped to the floor. One of their arms swirled around Jongin’s body. It was not a physical pain—Jongin realized. It was a mental torture.

“No, Kai! Kai!”

“What’s going on?!” his mother’s voice was nothing but an echo as the world began to spin around Jongin. Kai was dead. He can feel it.

 

* * *

 

“Order them to leave.” Vance said in a low voice. Kai kept his bloody hands fisted as he turned his head just enough for Vance to see the side of his face. Sehun felt himself shudder as he tried to take in everything that had happened before his eyes. Kai had just felled his Nightmare. He had just annihilated his Hell. This man that was standing before him was no longer the same Kai. He was no longer the man Sehun had fallen in love with. Vance took a few steps forward and the night-furred wolf—Adrian—took Vance’s side while Kai stood on the other. “I need them gone.” Vance did not look as exhausted anymore, but he had not fully recovered yet.

“Get the hell out of here.” Kai snarled and the wolves—his own pack—began to retreat, whining and mewling as they turned around and scampered away. “You.” The growl startled Sehun as Kai’s hand came up to clutch Vance’s neck. Sehun took a step onward but Vance raised a hand to stop him on his pace.

“I gave you what you wanted. To become a hybrid.”

“I didn’t want to become a hybrid.  _He_  wanted to make hybrids.” Kai shoved Vance back and shot the grey corpse on the ground a glare. “He had Kyungsoo.”

Adrian growled, flashing his fangs at Vance.

“Who’s Kyungsoo?” Vance raised a brow.

“Wait, what?” Sehun rasped. Kai slowly faced him with clenched jaw that was dripping with blood. “He had…  _Kyungsoo_? You’re telling me that… you did all this… because…” Sehun lost all his senses for a moment as his jaw dropped to the ground. “No. Was that how you found Luhan?! My father gave his body to you?!”

Kai suddenly flinched and blinked his eyes rapidly. Half of his face was covered in blood, concealing most of his expressions. He sucked in a sharp breath and stumbled back out of the sudden before bracing himself against a tree. “What’s… happening to me?”

“You’re in transition.” Vance said quickly. “You need human blood.” He shot the black wolf a glance. “Both of you.”

Kai was gasping for air. “I can’t… breathe.”

“You don’t have to.” Vance edged closer to him and placed his hands on Kai’s shoulders. “Calm down. Let’s get you out of here first.”

Kai let out a brutal hiss and his face turned almost black with veins protruding under his eyes. He had his fangs out and ready before he had a hand over his mouth, the other rigidly clutching his blood soaked shirt, his eyelids suddenly shut so tightly they began to fidget and shudder from the bullish force, as if the very corner of his eyes were being pricked with a needle. “What the fuck is happening?!”

“Sehun, get out of here.” Vance ordered in a fuss as Adrian began to howl before he shuddered. Without a warning, Adrian sprinted out of there and disappeared into the forest.

Sehun’s distorted view slowly came to focus. The night was bleak and dark. Blankets of darkness covered the damned forest. Sehun’s lips were parted and his eyes were as wide as they could stretch. They were as immobile as the rest of his face, as if news like that was impossible to absorb any faster. He was frozen for maybe three whole minutes, unable to digest anything. “You…” the word came out as a whisper as everything began to sink in. “Kai!” he sprinted over to the man and took his face into his hands only to have Kai growl before he jammed Sehun back with his fangs on the ready to attack Sehun. A harsh grip on Sehun’s arm hauled him away from Kai.

“Go!” Vance snapped.

“No!” he cried as if his brain were being shredded from the inside. Emotional pain flowed out of his every pore. From his mouth came a cry from so raw that it even shocked Vance. Sehun grabbed onto a tree so that his violent shaking would not cause him to fall and from his eyes came a thicker flow of tears than he had cried for even his own mother when he had brutally murdered her. “You turned him into a Vampire! He was not going to kill me! No! No!” What had he done…

“You think I knew that he was doing all of this to save his friend?!” Vance retorted.

Sehun was losing his mind…again. He can feel it unravelling, the threads of every happy memory he could ever once recall, all but a disarray of strings scattered about his feet. His sharp knees dug into the earth as he hit the ground, his hands unsteady as they silently clawed at the dirt. He opened his mouth, but not a sound came out, his head violently quivering as if there was a drill to the back of his skull. His eyes saw nothing; they had lost all sight of what was and what could have been. His mouth was open, an eternal silenced scream, saliva dripping from behind his teeth and onto the ground, stained with the memory of those he ever loved. “No.” the word finally made it out of his mouth.

Kai dropped to the ground as well. “I was going to… get you out of here.” He gasped. “I could not do it anymore. You… are more important to me than Kyungsoo. I only realized that… after…” he trailed off, clutching his chest. “I was going to get you out of here!” he snapped. “You fuck… It’s… urrgh!” Kai growled again.

“You need blood.” Vance urged.

Kai’s eyes turned completely black as they set themselves on Sehun. “I do.” His fangs were out.

Vance jolted to Sehun at once and yanked him up to stand. “You need to get out of here  _now_ , Sehun! He fed on a Vampire as his first. The last thing we need is for a hybrid that feeds on Vampires to survive! Get out!”

Sehun kept his watery eyes on Kai who was glaring at him, forcing himself to stay against the tree still clutching at his chest. “Wh–what are you going to do with him?”

“That’s none of your concern. Go! Get Jongin. Stay by him.”

“No. What am I supposed to tell Jongin?”

“Tell him the truth. Before he hears it from the others.”

Kai shot up out of the blue with a ferocious roar and he bolted towards Sehun, just as terrifying as the fallen Hell. His eyes were fully black, as the night during a new moon. His mouth was wide opened, hissing, his fangs thirsty for blood—Sehun’s blood. Sehun staggered a couple of steps back before Vance grabbed hold of Kai, shoving him back. “This is all your fault!” Kai yelled for the entire forest to hear. “None of us wanted you to walk into our lives!” with a furious blow he elbowed Vance in the face before bolting over to Sehun.

“Kai.” panting, Sehun stood his ground. He did not move. He could not move. Even when Kai pounced him with the speed of lightning and the power of thunder, he did not retaliate. “Uhh…” his knees buckled and he heavily clung onto Kai’s body when Kai’s fangs sank into the side of his neck. Everything was a chaos from there onwards. Sehun was only lightly aware of the prickling pain on his neck as Kai devoured it, sucking in the blood from the vein that had ruptured. Sehun’s vision blurred, but he was still able to see Vance tearing Kai away from Sehun before he twisted Kai’s neck until it snapped. Sehun collapsed to the ground the same time as Kai before he lost his consciousness.  _At the time of great loss, your world gives way to sights and sounds of horror._ Sehun’s heart died for the second time and it felt as though it was being gripped in an ice-cold vice and ache as if it will implode in his chest, but still the boom-boom continued.

 

* * *

 

“Jongin?! Jongin!”

Jongin shot upright with a sharp gasp and gripped the edges of his bed with his chest heaving heavily. He squinted at the light. He awoke to soft sheets, and the morning light trickled in through the blinds. It was morning. He had been conked out all night. The pain was gone. It was replaced by a brutal numbness now. Jongin frantically glanced around him before he felt his mother’s hand on his shoulder. “Mom. Kai?”

“The boys are here.” His mother blurted out in a fuss. “Come on. Something has happened, Jongin.”

 _Something has happened._  Jongin knew what had happened. He sprinted down the stairs with his body trembling harder than a stark naked newborn in a blizzard. As he stormed out of the house, he spotted almost all of the pack standing on the porch, all reeking of blood, but there was no stain. “What happened?!” he shouted, clenching his hands into fists as he stomped down the veranda.

“Jongin, calm down.” His father sighed, holding him back.

“You fucking transformed last night, didn’t you?!” the rage was uncontrollable. Jongin wanted to rip every single one of their heads off. He shoved his father aside and marched up to Iren. “What the fuck happened?!” he snarled, grabbing the boy’s shirt’s collars.

“Jongin.” Iren lowered his gaze.

“I swear to God if any of you had done something against my orders—”

“We followed Kai last night.” He said, hanging his head. “We… had to.”

“Why?” Jongin dropped his hands from the boy’s shirt and gaped at him. “What happened?”

“He ordered us to follow him, Jongin. We couldn’t say no. Don’t you see? We follow your orders because we respect you. But we follow his orders because he’s the rightful First Alpha even if he’s not chosen.”

The agony was increasing in waves, small lulls giving false hope of an end. Each peak robbed Jongin’s ability to speak, sent him crashing to the bare boards. It was as though his blood has become acid, intent of destroying him from the inside out. All he can do was writhe, the occasional whimper escaping to echo off the walls. “Where… is he?”

Jongin did not want to hear an answer.

But he got one nevertheless.

“Something… really bad… happened, Jongin. He… and Adrian… turned against us.” said Iren. “We went back to look for them but they were all gone.”

“He’s… alive?”

“He was dead for a moment. We were all certain that he was dead. But… he isn’t. He…” trailing off, he rubbed the back of his neck. “We don’t know where he is, Jongin. We even transformed to see if we can connect with him in case if he’s transformed too, but no. None of us could even pick up his scent. Kai ordered us to back him up to capture a Count and his Prince. He didn’t tell us anything more. He told us to follow the orders of another bloodsucker. We just abided him ‘cause it’s Kai, Jongin. That was the first time all of us felt like we were being led by an Alpha. We don’t know where he is or Adrian or the other Vampires. He… killed that bloodsucker.”

Jongin retreated to the house before grabbing his truck keys and broke into a jog to his truck.

“Jongin, where are you going?!” asked his father who seemed just as lost as the rest of the pack.

Without making a reply, Jongin jumped into the truck.

He did not know what to think. What was so important that Kai would do such a thing and keep it away from Jongin? Did he seriously think that Jongin would be up to no good if he actually had talked to him beforehand? Jongin was even ready to leave this town in Kai’s hands.

Sehun... Jongin was not sure if he were more scared for Sehun or Kai. Kai was planning to capture Sehun and his father? But why?

Pulling the car on Adrian’s driveway, Jongin spilled out of the truck and raced to the door before pounding his fist on it. “Adrian!” His fist almost punched through the door, but Jongin dropped it after a number of knocks. He was not home. Jongin could sense it. Closing his eyes for an instant, he drew in a deep breath before returning to his truck.

 

* * *

 

From the carousel of random ideas comes some order— a subtle awareness of who he was under the flow of thoughts with their loose connections to his waking life. After a few moments more he began to analyse them in a lazy way, perhaps these ideas were meant to be kept. Some were composed as if from a book he once read, some were just silly. In another moment they were gone leaving no trace. If they were still in Sehun’s head there was no bread crumb trail back to them. His eyelids flickered open to the unlit room. Daylight. Slowly and reluctantly, Sehun uncovered his face. “Sehun.” the voice was like a soft wind caressing Sehun’s cheek. “You know where to find me.” Vance whispered but the words stirred in Sehun’s heavy head.

“Van…” he mumbled. Vance’s blurred figure towered before him but Sehun could not focus. He blinked, closed his eyes, and blinked again before clenching them fully close.

“I have to bring Kai and Adrian away. No one will be safe with them here. I need to train them. You will find me when I want you to find us.”

“N..no.”

“Rest now. I have found the right heir for me.” His lips touched Sehun’s forehead as his fingers were lightly pressed on Sehun’s cheek. “Say your goodbyes.”

Sehun wanted to lift his head. He wanted to open his eyes. He wanted to shout. But he could not. It was as if there were a huge boulder on his chest, weighing him down. Then he felt the hand that cupped a side of his face. “I might… hate you. But you are already a part of me, Sehun.” That voice, on the other hand, ignited the fire within Sehun. Kai’s lips kissed Sehun’s lower lip as if he were handling a rose petal. The kiss was brief and perfunctory, a duty done, a ritual performed. It was as if he had sealed a deal between them.

“That’s enough. Come on. We have to leave now.”

Kai’s lips drew away from Sehun, leaving nothing but the coldness of everything that they had shared ghosting over Sehun’s unmoving lips.  _Don’t leave._

“Sehun.” Vance called, pressing his lips against Sehun’s cheek. “You will forget everything that has happened between you and Kai. Kai is just someone who made your life miserable. It is Jongin who you love. You do not love Kai. You do not know Kai. Jongin is the one who makes you happy. You will forget that I’m bringing Adrian and Kai away. You will forget that I was in this town at all. You will forget everything that happened in the past two days. You… love… Jongin.”

“Jongin.” Sehun finally let out but his own voice pounded in his ears.

“Good.”

Soon, the room was dead. Just as dead as Sehun was.

 

* * *

 

“You haven’t seen him?” Jongin tucked the phone between a side of his head and shoulder as he stormed out of the truck.

“No. He hasn’t checked in for some while. Is something the matter?” asked the police officer.

“He’s gone. I couldn’t locate his child as well. Are you sure he has resigned his job?”

“Yes.”

“All right. Thank you.” he hung up on the call as he leapt up the steps of Sehun’s veranda. He did not bother to ring the doorbell as he pushed the glass door open. “Sehun!” he gave the living area a cursory glance before marching up the stairs. “Sehun!”

When he entered Sehun’s room, he found Sehun on the bed in clean, pristine white shirt with the comforter covering the bottom half of his body. But it was not Sehun’s scent that caught Jongin’s attention. The room, the bed, the covers, everything reeked of Kai’s scent.

“Sehun.” Jongin called calmly, dragging his feet to the bed. Climbing onto the bed with a knee, Jongin curled his hand around the back of Sehun’s neck and lifted it. Sehun’s eyelashes batted before his eyes flashed open.

“Jongin.” Sehun gasped and threw himself onto Jongin, wrapping his arms around Jongin’s neck. “What happened? I… I feel so… thirsty.”

Jongin blinked twice before curling his arms around Sehun’s body. “Sehun, where are Kai and Adrian?”

“Adrian? I don’t know. Are you okay?” he pulled back and clenched onto Jongin’s hair at the back of his head as his other hand stroked Jongin’s jawline. “I love you, Jongin.” He rasped and kissed the corner of Jongin’s lips before hugging him again.

 

_To be continued..._

 

**_* * * * * * *_ **

This happiness, this love felt like an illusion. Like a shadow. Things appeared to be in contact, but they were not. The things he felt without touching them and the things he did not feel even if he touched them. Like a lotus leaf and water. The water droplets always seemed to be touching the leaf, but in actuality, the leaf repelled them. It made him feel the presence of his love—with a sense of detachment. He withered, he yearned and he was lost. It felt as if he were waiting for something that was not there, that was not going to happen. He held the man he loved and he let the man he loved hold him in return. But no matter how much they held one another, he longed for the single caressing touch that would make his dead life blossom. Just how the red soil blended with the water from the rain, he felt his heart being already blended with another in love and  _hatred._

_“If I ever grow cold come find me, because then I’m truly lost. If I ever recoil at your touch I’ve harmed my soul and need your forgiveness. Sehun… with you around me I will always find my way home, for when fear sets my compass spinning, it matters not which direction I take, only that I keep on walking.”_

Sehun jolted upright on the bed with his body shuddering as if it had been struck by lightning. His brain short-circuited for a moment and he blacked out as if his brain needed a quick reboot. He felt thrashed, numbed and confused.

“Sehun.” Jongin rasped in his half-sleepy hoarse voice, sitting up as Sehun scrubbed his face with his bare palms. “What’s wrong?” he curled an arm around Sehun’s bare waist and sleepily kissed his shoulder before resting his forehead on it.

Sehun was not sleeping, that was certain. But he often blacked out a lot. And during those episodes, he found himself reliving a life that he had not lived. The holes in his memories grew larger and larger by the day. This was the worst episode in the past two years. “Nothing.” He murmured as Jongin’s arm tightened around his body. He heard Jongin hum a quiet ‘hmm’ as he nuzzled into the crook of Sehun’s neck.

“You smell like sex.” Jongin breathed before kissing a corner of the neck. Sehun’s brows furrowed into a frown as he glanced out the balcony’s glass doors. The morning had strings of white stratus to contrast against the blue sky. He tried to take in the bright blue squeezing between the gaps of the dominating clouds without squinting.

“Don’t you have to get to work, Jongin?” he sighed, pushing Jongin back to lie down and rested his head on Jongin’s toned chest as Jongin’s arm moved to Sehun’s shoulder blades.

“Do I have to?” he asked, painting circles on Sehun’s back with his fingertips. Sehun suppressed a smile, sliding a knee between Jongin’s thighs under the white covers and let it brush against his crotch. “Should I take that as a no?”

“You lazy man. Get up.” he gave Jongin’s abs a hard slap before sliding off him and fell onto the bed.

“Did you have another nightmare?”

“I told you, Jongin. They’re not nightmares. I’m not asleep.”

“Yeah.” Jongin shifted to lie on his side with his head propped on his hand. He brought his other hand to Sehun’s stomach and began to draw random patterns on his abs. “But we call them nightmares, Sehun. What are they about anyway?” his fingers skimmed Sehun’s waistline, bordering the base of his cock.

“I don’t know. Fragments of nonsense. I can’t make sense of any of it.”

“Well, you look extremely sexy when you’re confused.” Jongin scoffed and leaned in to kiss the corner of Sehun’s mouth. “I’d love to stay and help you clear things out, but I have to get to work.” grunting, he pushed the covers aside and got off the bed, scavenging the floor for his pants as Sehun tucked a hand under his head, watching Jongin pull his clothes on. “If I were you, I wouldn’t let them bother me too much and focus on things that matter the most.” He bent down and pecked on Sehun’s lips, smirking while fastening the fly of his jeans. “And that’s you.”

Sehun clung onto the back of Jongin’s neck and yanked him down until he had to steady himself with one of his knees on the edge of the bed as Sehun’s tongue slithered past his lips. “Don’t go.” He mumbled into Jongin’s mouth and kissed his lower lip with Jongin’s hand cupping a side of his face.

Chuckling a little, Jongin drew away and pulled his shirt on. “A moment ago, you called a lazy man. I’m gonna need the money if I have to bring my boyfriend to some fancy restaurant, don’t I?”

“Your boyfriend happens to be rich for eternity.”

“No. His foster father is.” He grabbed Sehun’s hair at the back of the head for one last kiss—a sloppy and hungry one at that—before he snatched the truck keys from the bedside table. “Dress pretty for dinner.”

“Ooooh.” Sehun flashed a lopsided grin. “Where are you bringing me?”

“Just…” Jongin shook his head as his cheeks coloured. Even his tanned skin could not hide the blush. “Just a café. Nothing big.”

“Hm.”

Jongin seemed flushed as his hand fumbled with the keys. “I should go. And, baby, I hope it’s just some nightmare, though.” He pecked on Sehun’s temple before hurrying towards the door.

“I’m sure it’s not a nightmare, Jongin. I feel like… there’s a blank page in my life. Like… someone has erased a whole page of my life. It’s… ridiculous, I know.”

Jongin came to an abrupt halt at the door and he turned to face Sehun with a lockjaw and a scowl etched on his brows. “What are you talking about, Sehun?” his tone was grave, just as his expression. Sehun stared at him for a moment before sitting up.

“I’m just rambling. It doesn’t make sense anyway.”

Rubbing his nape, Jongin cleared his throat and pushed his hair back. “Yeah. Yeah. You… Sehun, don’t let any of that get to your head.”

“That’s the thing, Jongin. They’re already in my head. Just… kind of suppressed. I know that it has been some years, but it’s impossible that I’ve spaced out so much. I just don’t know how and what has happe—”

Jongin cut him off at once. “I told you that nothing like that happened, Sehun. Can you please not think too much? We moved here to stay away from all the madness, Sehun. I still take care of my pack, but I’m happy to stay away from Jackson as much as I can. So, don’t drag me back to the madness.”

“Okay. I’m sorry.”

“Okay. See you later. Love you.”

“I love you, too.”

When Jongin had left the room, Sehun sank back to the bed and vacantly stared at the white washed ceiling. Two years had passed since he and Jongin had officially started going out, since Sehun had completely failed in the task Vance had delegated him to do. He fled the town. But it was not as if Vance were not able to locate him. If he wanted to, he could have found and faced Sehun a long time ago. But he did not. Which only boggled Sehun’s mind harder. It was as if Vance did not bother anymore.

Shaking his head, Sehun rose from the bed and pulled on his robe. As Jongin had suggested, they should just focus on what mattered right now, right this instant. And this instant, only Jongin mattered to Sehun. After a loveless life, Sehun found himself smothered by love. Every kiss, every touch, every lovemaking, every passing second with Jongin mattered the most now. He was done thinking about what Vance would want, what would make Vance happy. He wanted himself to be happy.

He loved Jongin. That was all that he was sure of.

Descending down the stairs, Sehun wondered where Vance was now. Or what he was up to. He was not even sure if Vance ever thought of him. But Sehun had Vance to thank for what he had now—Jongin. He was only even more indebted to Vance. The town had brought Sehun more happiness than he could ever anticipate. Sure, he had to flee from the town because Jongin was sure that his pack will not let him be if they knew their Alpha was in a relationship with a Vampire. But the other reason Sehun left the town was his father who was roaming the town the last time Sehun saw him. Speaking of which, he recalled the night his father almost caught him.

Sehun filled the glass with blood from the blood bag before he flumped on the armrest of the couch. That night. He clearly remembered being chased by his father. He took a sip of the blood. He clearly remembered being staked by his father. He clearly remembered the fright, the terror the Hell. But someone saved him. Something else—something  _important_  had happened. Every memory he had of Jongin was severely fragmented. Sehun settled the glass on the coffee table and he clasped his hands over his ears as his head pounded. All these holes were his worst tormentors. He could never fill them. He only forgot about them when he was with Jongin. Otherwise, he was consumed by the pain of these holes in his memories. Things were blurred. It was as if parts of the whole picture were pixelated.

He snapped out of it when the doorbell rang. Shaking the thoughts away, Sehun blankly blinked at the closed door. What the… No one had ever rang the doorbell except Jongin when he forgot to bring the house keys with him.

Sehun rose from the armrest and wove his way to the door with his fists clenched. He came to a standstill when his head swam in the scents of a Werewolf and an alien Vampire. For a moment, he was unable to register the scents in his mind. There was an interplay of scents. But the confusion only lasted for a minute before Sehun distinguished the Werewolf scent. “Adrian.” He rasped and ripped the door open.

The man stood before him, monumentally tall, wrapped in a black leather jacket, black pants and shirt. His hair was swept up, spiked and neat. He was paler than the last time Sehun had seen him. He was…

“Great to see you again, Sehun.” Adrian smirked. “I suggest you get dressed.”

* * *

“Adrian. Wait.” Sehun yanked his cardigan on, hurtling after Adrian who strutted a proud strut down the veranda, heading over to the jet black glassy motor that stood on the porch. Sehun halted on his pace as his eyebrows rose and he blinked at the polished raven black Lamborghini Veneno. “Whoa…” he distinctly remembered that Adrian was a police officer. How could a cop afford  _that_? He was not sure if he were more appalled by the fact that Adrian reeked of Vampire scent which completely baffled him because Adrian was surely a Werewolf. No. Sehun was certain that everything about Adrian screamed Vampirism. His brain desperately scrambled to make sense of it all but he was rendered speechless, temporarily incapacitated. His brain formulated no thoughts other than to register that he was shocked, temporarily at sixes and sevens. “Wait!” he bolted past Adrian and stopped him on his tread. “No.” he could not get the words out as his nose stung with the confusion of Adrian’s spoor and aura.

Adrian stood at least several inches taller than Sehun with a nonchalant smirk playing on his full pink lips. His shoulders looked broader than the last time Sehun had seen them. The black leather jacket clung onto them as if it were made for those sharp shoulders. His cheeks are chiselled like a finely-carved Michelangelo statue. He did not look like that man Sehun once knew. His aftershave was as strong as midnight sex. His thick eyebrows were arched in a cocky manner as if to mock Sehun. His tanned skin was paler than anything Sehun had seen. The tight black t-shirt under the leather jacket stuck against his prominent well defined abs. Sehun knew what he was. But he was refusing to believe it.

“You want answers?” Adrian’s smirk widened into a full-blown smile.

Sehun clasped a hand over his mouth and he took a step back before dragging the hand through his hair, pushing it back. “No. No, this can’t be true.” He let out, glancing back at Adrian who plunged his hands into his pants’ pockets without displaying any sign of trepidation. “You’re… you’re…”

“Yes, Sehun, I’m a hybrid.” He said without enthusiasm, with the same coolness that Sehun had always seen him. “And I presume you already know who has the only means of turning me into a hybrid.”

It felt as if someone had thrashed Sehun right in the head and he stood there, gaping at Adrian, unable to bring himself to utter even a single syllable. He wiped his mouth and jaw and rubbed his forehead. “Vance…” he whispered as his guts knotted.

“Yeah. Come with me, Sehun.” Adrian pulled the car’s door open and waited, holding it open. Sehun shook his head, wondering if he could get the confusion tossed out of his head. This couldn’t be. It was impossible. Why would Vance do such a thing?! It did not make any sense! “Sehun.” Adrian called again.

“No. What the fuck happened?!” he burst, planting his feet firmly into the gravel under his shoes. “How did you even know about Vance? This is impossible!”

“You and I both know that it isn’t, Sehun. I came here to tell you. So get in.”

“This doesn’t make sense. Vance would have at least told me if he was gonna do something like this! Jongin told me that you were transferred! That you left Jackson!”

Adrian slammed the car’s door shut, clenching his jaw as his eyebrows furrowed into a scowl. “Jongin is an opportunist.”

Sehun’s lips parted to gawk at him. “What?!”

Rolling his jaw, Adrian shook his head. The irritation and anger were obvious in his eyes. “Believe me or don’t. Jongin plays his cards according to the situations. I know. So I’m not exactly surprised that he chose to hide everything from you.”

“What the hell are you talking about?!”

Adrian scoffed and leaned his back against the car with one of his boots pressed against the car’s door. “Right. I guess I’ll just have to walk you through the things that Vance made you forget.”

Blood pounded in his ears and his throat tightened as if his lungs were squeezing up it. “Wh… what?”

_Forget…_

_You will forget…_

“Vance wants you home. He wants you to…  _tame_  Kai.”

Sehun remained silent, staring at Adrian lifelessly.

“Ah. You don’t know who Kai is.” Adrian sighed.

“I know who he is.” Sehun blurted out with unmoving eyes. “Jongin’s… brother. I knew him. He… made my life miserable.” The words rolled of his tongue naturally even if he did not mean them. “Jongin told me that he left the town without saying anything. He abandoned everyone.”

“Good. I guess Jongin did not bother to tell you that you and him…” he trailed off, biting his lower lip. He was studying Sehun’s leaden face. “Wow. He really is an opportunist.” He snorted. “A heartbreaker as well.”

“I’m not following. Vance made me forget what, Adrian?! What are you rambling about?!”

“Jongin lied. Did he at least tell you that Kai was the one who got rid of your father? That he was the one who saved you from that bastard by risking his own life?”

Sehun stood stock-still, eyeballing him with numbness. “My father is… dead?”

“Kai ripped his heart out. But you don’t remember that, do you?”

“I… don’t know what you’re talking about, Adrian. You just show up here after all these years and you’re a bloody hybrid and now you’re telling me that Vance made me forget?! What exactly did he make me forget, Adrian?!”

“Look. What you need to know is that Vance wants you back. And you can ask Jongin.”

“Ask him what?!” Sehun could not help himself but yell his heart out. None of this made sense! Or Sehun just couldn’t believe his eyes and ears. Adrian cannot be a hybrid. And everything that he was saying was not the truth.

“Why did you leave Jackson, Sehun? Why did Jongin leave the town? Ask him who Kai was to you. And you know where you should be by the next couple of days. All you need to know right now you were compelled to forget the most important days of your life.” He walked over to the other side of the car and unlatched the door. “See you in Transylvania, Sehun.”

“No! You can’t leave! Wait!” Sehun zoomed over to him and grabbed him by the jacket. “Vance wouldn’t have chosen an heir! I’m his Prince.”

“Not anymore.” Adrian shoved Sehun’s hands off of him. Those two words slapped Sehun hard and staggered him.

“ _Not… anymore_? What’s that… supposed to mean? You’re his heir now?”

“Oh, God, Sehun. You’ve a lot to catch up on. So I suggest you get started.” He cupped the sides of Sehun’s face and looked directly into his eyes with his thumbs pressed on Sehun’s cheekbones. “The next Count is not me… It’s Kai. And he’s threatening Vance. Something Vance did not foresee. You’re living a lie right now, Sehun. And… tell Jongin I said hi.” With just that, he slid into the car and pulled the door shut. The next thing Sehun knew was the car’s engine revving wildly before it disappeared from there as Sehun stood there with his heart in his throat.

 

* * *

 

“I've to run.” Jongin jabbered out, adjusting the collar of his polo shirt as he grabbed his truck keys from the cashier counter. The bookstore was vacant as always. It was rarely with customers and even then, no one actually bought anything.

“Why? Your shift isn’t over yet!” Ley whined, pouting her chapped lips with her fingers stuck in her dreadlocks.

Smirking, Jongin pulled his coat on. “I’ve got a date.”

“Oh for Christ’s sake, Jongin! You don’t have to be excited for dates anymore. You’ve been with your boyfriend for two years now!”

A short laugh escaped Jongin’s mouth as he hurried towards the door. “That’s the thing. I can never not be excited around him, Ley.”

“Shit. Wow.”

“I know.” He shrugged. “I’m gonna propose to him tonight. So it’s extra special.”

Ley paused for a moment as he eyes bulged out and nostrils flared. “What?! Are you serious?!”

Jongin chuckled a little before pulling the ring case out of his pocket. Proposing did not just mean this. It meant so much for Jongin. He finally was ready to mate. If this was what it took for them to bind each other together, then so be it. He lost Sehun once. He was not going to do the same mistake twice. In a moment of weakness, Jongin diverted his attention from someone who was worth it. Kai was gone now. And… so was Adrian. Jongin had no idea of where they were, but he knew they were alive. He knew that they were okay. As an Alpha, he was sure of that. Many questions were left unanswered and Jongin was far too tired to bother anymore. This moment mattered. Every minute he had with Sehun mattered the most now. Sehun was immortal. Although Werewolves aged slower than humans, Jongin knew that he wouldn’t be around forever. So every bit of his short eternity with Sehun mattered. There was no point in dwelling in the past. There was no more obstacle. Kai was gone. Jongin was selfish, but he was done crying over someone he could never have.

“This is… OMG.” She gasped, probing the white gold ring before cupping a hand over her mouth.

“I made a reservation in this fancy restaurant and all. So I don’t want to make him wait. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Let me know how it goes!”

“I will!” he yelled back as he stormed through the door.

 

* * *

 

Bitter cold existed behind the closed door. The silence seemed to be offering respite from the biting night outside. A dance of light and shadows spilled from the artificial fireplace, glinting off a cobweb of frost on the window, turning the living room into a sanctuary of a dim ambience. Sehun remained in the same position he had been in for hours—on the couch with his hands clasped together and elbows propped on his knees. His eyes had been fixated on the carpet under his shoes the entire time. His mind, however, was thousands of miles away. His cheeks were dry. He expected himself to cry sometime soon, but he could not. The calm demeanour which he had developed over the decades had melted away the instant Adrian left the compound. His eyes were flaring and closing into slits; his lips quivering wanting to slur the words that he did not mean but wanted to spew at the one man he loved for eternity.

Sehun only pulled his head up when he heard Jongin’s truck pull up on the driveway. He stared at the door for a moment before peering at the wall clock that read 10:32 pm. The door was shoved open with the utmost ferocity and Jongin stepped in with his hair damp from sweat, curtaining his eyes. He banged the door close but did not move an inch from the doorway. Sehun kept his lips pursed and eyes unfocused. But he could clearly discern Jongin’s dagger-like black look and death glare.

“I texted you and called you. Multiple times!” he shouted, balling his hands into fists. “What were you doing?”

Sehun calmly rose to his feet and stood his ground. There was not a word that was exchanged between them for a long minute. Both their eyes were screaming in frustration, but they remained silent. And then, “Who killed my father, Jongin?”

The silence stretched between them as Jongin stiffened with his eyes widened and fists released.

Sehun took a step forward. “Who… killed my father… Jongin?”

“Sehun—”

“Who saved me that night when my father almost killed me?”

Jongin did not answer as he stared at Sehun with a sheen of confusion and anxiety in his eyes.

He crossed the distance between them with slow steps. “Vance was here. You’ve met him. The holes in my memories… The nightmares. You know about them. Your brother. Where is your brother?”

Jongin shook his head once with bloodshot eyes.

“What happened between me and him?” Sehun pressed, taking another step closer.

“Sehun… what happened?”

“Adrian was here.” He spat, grinding his teeth.

That was when Jongin’s face withered entirely. “Adrian?”

“What have you been hiding from me all this while?” he asked in a low tone. “What the fuck did you hide from me, Jongin?!” his fist slammed the glass top of the table at the side before it ran straight through the glass until it shattered into smithereens, exploding all over the room. Sehun’s ears rang for a very short second as the lashes on his knuckles dripped blood.

“Sehun.” Jongin’s voice barely passed a whisper as a tear trickled down his cheek.

“You fucking…” Sehun palmed his own face to hide the tears that began to brew in his eyes. Finally. “Why?! To keep me interested so that I would fuck you every night?! Why the hell would you do this?!” his scream coursed through the house, reverberating against the walls. “The fact that you left the town because you didn’t want me to find out about everything that had happened…” he cut himself off as he raised his fist to plunge it into Jongin’s face but stopped himself when Jongin did not even try to defend himself. He did not even blink his reddened eyes at Sehun’s forthcoming attack. “I loved you, Jongin.” He grunted out as his throat burned and eyes stung.

“Sehun, I really don’t know anything. I swear. Yes, I hid some stuffs from you. But only because…”

“Only because?!”

“Because… I wanted you, Sehun.”

“Yeah. Adrian said that you were an opportunist.” He blinked his tears away, shaking his head. “Who did I fall in love with?” with that, he jolted upstairs and without pausing for even a second, he grabbed hold of his luggage and began to fill it with his clothes.

“Sehun! Please, listen to me. Hear me out.” Jongin begged when he burst into the room. The instant his hand curled around Sehun’s arm, Sehun spun around and clasped Jongin’s neck, jamming him against the wardrobe. He made a low guttural sound at the impact but did not fight Sehun.

“Don’t. I still love you. Don’t make me hate you forever, Jongin.” He pulled his hand back and resumed to pack his things.

“Where are you going?!” Jongin yelped when Sehun rummaged through the drawers to grab his passport.

“Home.”

“Sehun—”

“Shut up.”

“No, you can’t—”

“Watch me.” He yanked the zips of his luggage and jolted back downstairs.

“Why won’t you give me a chance to explain?!” Jongin called after him as he snatched the car keys.

“Because no matter what you say, Jongin, I will not forgive you!” he did not even bother to look at Jongin for one last time as he raced out of the house.

 


	6. Five

The norm was that questions led to answers. That was par for the course. One would expect that remedies, answers and closure will be taken receipt of when questions were asked. Not in his case. Answers led to questions. Nebulous answers provided a route for Sehun to ask the questions he never thought of asking. _What am I dealing with? Was anything I had with Jongin real? Who did I love? Did Vance ever care for me? How many memories have I lost? Has been forced to lose? Had I been nothing but a tool for everyone’s gaining? What did I have with Jongin? Was any of it real or was it just an outcome of everything that had happened?_ The pivotal question remained, _What did I forget?_

He had answers to all of those questions. Just not the access to them. The answers were all within him, locked away, barricaded by a wall that Sehun had never deemed possible of building. The wall Vance had apparently erected. He should have at least suspected something when Jongin dragged them out of the town without any sort of detailed explanation. Sehun should have questioned him of his integrity and probity when he said that it was for his own safety. But Sehun was just too blinded by the love he had for Jongin. This surreal, unquestioning love. Not once had Sehun doubted the realness of his love for Jongin. This unhealthy love he had for Jongin was unequivocal, unusual. Unbelievable. There was absolutely no room for uncertainty or hesitancy. Sehun was sure that he loved Jongin. It was as if he were convinced to believe that he loved Jongin.

_You… love… Jongin._

Sehun shook his head, clenching and releasing his eyes briefly as the car tyres screeched on the rain-kissed road of Jackson, yanking the car to the side almost crashing onto the pavement. Stepping on the brake, he jerked forward before the seatbelt held him back like a mother stopping her son from walking away. The bumper grazed the edge of the pavements and it took Sehun a moment to gather his stability. Gripping the steering wheel with a strength that could almost snap the wheel into two, he kept his head hung, lips parted and eyes burning with raving rage. When he looked up, some of the pedestrians were staring at his car with bulged out eyes. The first place his heart brought him was here. Nightwalkers.

_You… love… Jongin._

He was not in love with Jongin.

‘ _Thump thump’._

Blinking blankly, Sehun glanced over at the side window and glared at the fist that pounded the window twice. Unbuckling his seatbelt, he shoved the car’s door open and burst out of the vehicle with his hands rolled tight. “Sehun!”

The instant he was met with Chanyeol’s wide, optimistic grin, Sehun felt a sudden mental tug as if he _had a whiplash._

_“Now, my little minions will get all the blondies stripped!”_

_The blond guys were ripped off their shirts and the girls had to raise their blouses enough to expose their stomachs._

_“Stop wasting our time, you dick! Strip!”_

_He peeled his coat off and unbuttoned his shirt and let it dangle on his shoulders_

_Out of the blue, Sehun was shoved to lie recumbent on the floor and he thought about protesting at first. But then he let the thought slip. He was in a locked area with drunk Werewolves. And Jongin had abandoned him. He would not want to make a scene right now._

_Unbuttoned shirt. Sweat. Wet. Panting. Licking. Lips. Hot._

_“What the fuck?!” Sehun hissed when six slabs of jelly were placed on his abdomen in a straight line from his navel, up to his chest._

_“They’re Vodka Jello shots. Now. Your partners will need to eat them. But of course, if you don’t finish eating them all, there will be forfeit. So even if the jello breaks apart, lick and suck it up right from your partner’s stomach. I will warn you. It can be ticklish.”_

 

“Yoohoo?” the hand that was being waved before his eyes drew him back to reality. Reality. What was that back there, then? The holes still made no sense. Sehun clearly remembered the Welcome Party. But something important was lost from the picture. A heavily distorted picture. “Sehun?” Chanyeol’s cordial and nonchalant tone was gone as he laid a hand on Sehun’s shoulder. “Are you all right?” Sehun brought his head up, mirroring Chanyeol’s frown.

Shaking his heavy head in a jade, Sehun scrubbed his face with his bare palms and slumped back against the car. “I’m not. I’m… not all right.” The words came out as a straggle of whispers.

“Hey, hey.” Chanyeol grabbed onto Sehun’s arms and squeezed them a little. “It’s been ages since I’ve seen you and you look like an utter mess. What’s the matter? What happened?”

Sehun kept his head low as spun in a whirlpool. He stared at Chanyeol’s leather jacket and thick muffler before looking up at Chanyeol with glistening eyes. “What happened…” he swallowed before speaking again. “That night?”

“Which night?”

“Hey, move your car before I price your ass with a ticket!” Sehun did not even bother with whoever that squawked that, but Chanyeol did. He smiled and waved at the officer.

“We’ll move it.” He called out and turned to Sehun again with a dreadful expression. “You look like you’re in a terrible shape, Sehun. And your world… is… crazy. What happened?”

Sehun glowered into Chanyeol’s eyes with confusion. “ _My_ world? What do you know about… _my_ world?”

For an instant, Chanyeol was lost for words as he stared at Sehun. “What do you mean?”

“What do I mean? What did _you_ mean?”

“Sehun… I know. I know about the…” he glanced around, hands still gripping Sehun’s arms. “The wolves. Your boyfriends are… ya know. Werewolves.” He whispered.

Sehun’s mouth went dry. “How… h-how did you…”

“You were right there.” Chanyeol frowned, befuddled. “When Jongin exploded into a… the thing to fight Kai.”

 _Kai._ Again. That name.

Sehun raised a hand to his mouth and rubbed his jaw before licking his lips and let out a lifeless laugh. “Of course I don’t remember that.”

“Do you both have a problem abiding by the simple laws?” the officer walked up to them, wearing a thick scowl.

“Nope. Nope. We’re leaving, aren’t we, Sehun?” Chanyeol flashed a lopsided smile that hid so many confusion.

“Yeah.” Sehun let out, shaking his head and climbed into the car. He waited until Chanyeol was in the passenger seat before pulling car back onto the road. For a long moment, nothing but silence was stretched between them. Sehun’s hands were crushing the wheel and the gear stick respectively while Chanyeol kept clearing his throat.

“Where’re we going?”

“What happened that night, Chanyeol? At the Welcome Party.”

“I’m not sure what you’re referring to, Sehun.” Chanyeol genuinely looked confused. “I was pissed as fuck. I don’t remember what happened myself.”

“No! I mean the jello shots. Who… was my partner?”

“Oh. Kai. Why are you asking me?”

Sehun went easy on the gas and slowed the car. “Kai.”

“Yeah?”

“So it’s just him I don’t remember. Vance made me forget everything about him.”

“What?”

Sehun pulled the car over and swallowed. “Get down.”

“Whoa. Wait up. What happened to you? You owe me that explanation, Sehun.”

“I don’t owe you or anyone shit, Chanyeol! Get the fuck down!”

Nothing, no one moved after Sehun’s outburst. Chanyeol stared at him with an expression that spelled out his frustration. After a moment, he reached out and let his hand rest on Sehun’s knee. “I know that you never took me for a friend. I know that you don’t care about anything that I have to say. But I do care about you. I see Jongin all the time in town. I ask him about you. Every single time. A lot of people left Jackson after graduating, Sehun. Who am I kidding… Everyone left. But I don’t really have much option. I’m stuck here. The little adventure that I get means a lot to me. And from the very first second I met you, you looked like… an adventure. An excitement. You were a mystery. A mystery that I knew I won’t be able to solve. Look. I get that I don’t mean much to you. I’m probably just some boring ordinary guy in your exciting supernatural life, a passing cloud. But you should know that to many people, you are very special. So… if there is anything at all that I can do to help you, tell me.”

There it was. The answers. But Sehun wanted to face Vance first.

“I’m sorry.” He muttered, brushing Chanyeol’s hand off his knee and looked out the window, at the streak of lonely road. Grey clouds still ceilinged Jackson even after pouring its sorrows. “Adventure. I figured you were that sort of guy.” He forced a smirk at Chanyeol. “The way you liked to party.”

“Yeah.” He scoffed. “The wildest thing Jacksoners think they can do here. Wait till they find about the Werewolves.”

“You…” Sehun eyed Chanyeol up and down, gulping. “Didn’t tell anyone?”

“Not like anyone would believe me. Besides, I think I like my head attached to my body. Jongin did implicitly threaten me that he’ll have to kill me if I open my mouth.”

“He wouldn’t do that.”

“Yeaaah, I don’t wanna take my chances.” He smiled but the smile faltered shortly. “Where are you going, Sehun?” he jerked his head at the bag in the backseat.

“Away, Chanyeol.”

“What happened between you and Jongin?”

“Everything and nothing.” He sighed. “I… feel like… the life that I’ve been living was… constructed for me. All these years.”

“Whoa. You’re speaking as if you’ve lived for 50 years.” Chanyeol chuckled in amusement.

“Add another twenty years to it.”

“Haha.”

Chanyeol gasped.

“You’re kidding me! You’re not one of them! Jongin told me—”

“No. I’m not a Werewolf.”

“Then?” his eyebrows knitted into an unhinged senility.

Sehun scratched the back of his head and faced Chanyeol with pursed lips. “You wanted an adventure, right? You wanna get away from this town?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you… want to come with me?”

“To where?”

“Transylvania?”

Chanyeol’s eyes ballooned. “Transyl fucking Vania?!”

“I have to leave now, Chanyeol. And… I might need someone who can testify to everything that has happened.”

“But… I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”

“You will. But do you want to come?”

It did not take Chanyeol more than two seconds to provide Sehun with a brief, firm answer. “Yes!”

 

* * *

 

The riotous metallic scent no longer allured him. It suffocated him. Too much. Too much it drowned the manor in its stench as if it were flowing like a lazy river. The centuries old manor had not once been stained with the messiness of human blood. But now, each corner had a corpse stashed almost every day. Vance followed the trail of the red iron scent up the carpeted stairs, letting his slender fingers hover over the mahogany railing of the stairs. The dragon silver ring on his ring finger symbolized his strength. The cross pendant hanging on his silver neck chain exemplified his courage to protest the puny human beliefs. None of them was to aid him against the rebel he had created.

He stopped at the doorway and crossed his arms over his chest. Four. Four women, all scattered across the room. One of the mantelpiece, one on the table, two on the floor. All their skins were already the pallor of a corpse. Thick beads crawled down their wrists and necks in their garish red. All dressed in beautiful cocktail gowns. All lifeless. Blood patches covered the carpets on the floor and the scent of death hung heavily in the air and amidst them was Adrian, perched on the couch dressed in the very blood coloured t-shirt, black jeans and boots with a book in his hands. He’d been out.

“I didn’t do it.” He muttered nonchalantly without taking his eyes off the book which he clearly was not reading.

“No. Of course, you didn’t.” Vance flashed half a smile, crossing his legs, tightening his arms over his chest. “Mind telling me where the bastard who in fact did this is?”

Adrian did not respond immediately. He rose to his feet and crossed the woman on the floor to get to the bookshelf before returning the book to it. “I don’t know.”

“Okay. Where were you for the past week?”

“Missed me much?”

“Answer the question, Adrian.” He saw Adrian’s jaw tighten.

He turned to face Vance with a dead expression. “Away. I needed a break. Do you trust me or do I have to lay out some sort of evidence?”

Vance licked his lips and ran his fingers through his shoulder-length hair. “You just sat here and let Kai do this?”

“He was having a party. He’s a teenager, isn’t he? They tend to do that. I couldn’t say no.” he shrugged with a smirk and started towards Vance. “Besides, I’m not his babysitter.” He stopped directly before Vance and stood tall like a tower. It was not always when Vance felt small. He always felt small when standing before Adrian. “Is there anything else you need from me, your highness?”

Vance shook his head, stepping aside. “You’re not on Kai’s team, Adrian.” He muttered when the taller brushed past him.

“No, Vance. Of course not. I’m on _your_ team. ‘Cause I’ve no other option, do I?” his smile was the most insincere. “I am, after all, sired to you.”

Vance clenched his jaw. “He’s fighting it. The sire. Why don’t you?”

“Because I’m too fucking tired. If you don’t mind, I’ve to go and see my motherless child who you keep locked up in a cage like he’s some dog.”

“It’s for your own good.”

“Really?!” he spun around with his fists at the ready. “Everything you do is for _your_ own good, Vance! He’s three years old and I don’t think he even remembers me anymore!”

“Would you rather have him for your lunch, then?!”

Adrian remained silent but his teeth were grinding.

“Yeah, suppose not, Adrian. You are unstable. He’s human. Helpless. Vulnerable. I cannot let you hold him.”

“Whose fault is that, huh?”

Vance did not retort, but Adrian waited for a response. When he did not get any, he turned on his heel, shaking his head. Letting out a sigh, Vance raised his hand to rub his temples before Adrian halted on his pace and his back straightened. Vance dropped his hand from his forehead, along with his jaw. He threw a sharp glance over his own shoulder and gaped at the hallway as if he could see the main entrance from here. “You have got to be kidding me.” He murmured and looked over at Adrian who was pinning him with a smug smile. “You did not… You…”

Adrian answered it all with a lift of shoulders.

Vance twirled around at once and straightened his sports jacket before he bolted downstairs in the blink of an eye. “Open the door.” He ordered the butler, hurrying down the steps. Bowing, the butler obeyed and pulled the Herculean doors opened. “Sehun!” he plastered a Cheshire grin on his face and held his arms open when Sehun jolted past the entrance. The next thing he knew was the brutal blow that struck his fact—thanks to Sehun’s fist. “Argh.” He grunted, staggering to the side and rubbed his jaw before letting out a scoff and a laughter. “Huh. I was expecting a warm hug.”

“You asshole!” were the first words that gushed out of Sehun’s mouth before another fist was thrown at Vance. Only this time, Vance caught it. His eyes darted past Sehun’s shoulder and met with a pair of traumatized eyes. Vance recalled the boy from his visit to Jackson couple of years ago.

“Ah. I see you’ve brought active aggression along with a snack.” He smiled, but the smile was knocked off by Sehun’s other fist. “Now, now, Sehun. Let’s be civil and—”

“What did you do to me?!” Sehun’s cheeks were painted red, stained with tears as he plunged another fist at Vance’s face. Before the knuckles could bash Vance’s nose, Sehun’s wrist was caught and gripped. Only that it was not Vance who did it. Everything froze around them.

“Nice to see you, Sehun.” Kai muttered with a conceited smile etched on his lips as his hand curled tighter around Sehun’s wrist. Sehun uncurled his fist, gawking at Kai as if he had seen a ghost.

“Great. Now that we have a spectacular, dramatic reunion, time for some thanksgiving dinner. And Sehun brought home a friend.” Vance sighed tiredly, swiping the blood that trickled down the corner of his lips with his thumb, glancing over at the human boy who stood there like a stock-still statue with a backpack. 


	7. Six

His mind went blank to the hilt with this man’s inviolable hand fisting his abruptly emaciated rangy wrist. Sehun’s name sounded comfortable on this man’s lips. It was as if his name had been said, moaned, screamed, cried repeatedly by those lips. Those burning lips. Two pools of Night Sea devoured Sehun, piercing through his own eyes. Arrow-like gaze. His body began to pale. This man was not Jongin. This man was the colour that disappeared when Sehun opened his eyes two years ago. His prints on Sehun’s heart were the only memories left, but locked away. He was not known to Sehun and yet, it felt as if their hearts had bonded a long time ago. Several lifetimes ago. Now, he was a stranger—Sehun understood that much.

_“If I ever grow cold come find me, because then I’m truly lost.”_

Even when he had released his wrist, their eyes did not unhitch. Neither of them had been given the choice to have any connection between them, but there it was. The connection. The bond. In spite of locking it away. Kai’s fingers had themselves printed around Sehun’s wrist as his self-satisfied smile weakened Sehun hard. Who was this man? He knew him. And yet, he did not. The world around them became nothing but a blurred pattern of confliction and forbidden love. Only Kai stood in Sehun’s world now. He might look like Jongin. But he was nothing like him. Jongin was a forever flowing tender coldness. This man, this stranger, this… monster was the ferocious fire that had been ignited within Sehun.

“How are you, Sehun?” Sehun’s eyes dropped to the lips that moved in the most graceful manner. He sounded nonchalant. Sehun knew he was frowning. Could it be that it was just him who was overthinking it? Clearly they had known each other. Clearly Vance had deliberately made him forget everything about Kai, but for some odd reason, not everything that was related to Kai. Clearly, Jongin maintained unelaborated whenever Sehun inquired about his mysterious twin brother. Clearly, Adrian was not fooling anyone when he said Kai was to be the next Count. When Sehun had snapped out of his momentary nostalgia, Kai’s scent struck him dumb. Hybrid.

He shifted to face Vance again who was watching him with something like amusement in his face. “What… have you… done, Vance?” Sehun could barely hear his own voice as it spilled out of his mouth. “What did you… do to… me?”

“Now, now. Sehun, have I ever done anything to put you in harm’s way?” Vance flashed an assuring grin, stepping forward with his hands raised to Sehun’s shoulders. Sehun swatted his hands off, clenching his fists again. Vance let out a loud sigh and rolled his eyes. “We can talk when you’ve calmed down.” He eyed the butler. “Get his bags into his room and make sure all his and his friend’s needs are well attended to.” Once he had received a bow of the butler’s head, he brushed past Sehun and stopped before Chanyeol. “Why don’t we give them some space to catch up? Come with me.” Vance extended an arm, ushering Chanyeol to walk with him.

“Uhm…” Chanyeol shot an SOS look at Sehun who stood silent, unable to bring himself to speak. “I…” he nervously smiled, eyeballing Vance from top to toe with utter scepticism. “I’m very… confused.” He let out a breath of laugh, a hand squeezing the strap of his backpack. “Sehun, what’s going on?” his voice shook a little as he spoke. “I-I… I wasn’t…” he looked around him like a lost puppy. A lost, tall, powerful puppy. Sehun had not told him anything even after they had landed on Transylvanian land. He let Chanyeol do all the talking, but he could tell that Chanyeol knew something was terribly wrong. “Kai.” He called. “I thought you just disappeared. Sehun, why didn’t you tell me that we’re coming to see him? And what the heck is this mansion?!”

“Oh, dear.” Vance chuckled. “Come with me. I’ll clear your confusions.” He cupped Chanyeol’s arm and earned a frown from the taller man. “I’ve been told that I’m a _spectacular_ host.” His smirk was dangerously alarming. When Sehun did not object or say a word, Chanyeol shot him a frown.

“No, I’ll keep it.” Chanyeol hissed at the butler when the old man laid his hands on his backpack.

Vance nodded his head and ushered Chanyeol away from there. Once they disappeared into the hallway, Sehun’s eyes followed the new foreign scent that invaded the entrance hall. Adrian descended the stairs with a relaxed smile etched on his lips. A smile that displayed some sort of achievement. “Sehun. Good to see you again.” His eyes darted to Kai and he bit his lower lip.

Kai breathed out a snort and crossed his arms over his chest, grinning wide. “It’s your doing.” Kai sighed.

“Well, if it’ll stop you from massacring a country.” Adrian shrugged, plunging his hands into his jeans’ pockets and faced Sehun. “I see you have a lot on your plate right now. I’ll leave you to sort things out.”

“There is nothing to be sorted out.” Kai spat. “What he and I had was in another life, isn’t that right, Sehun?”

Sehun could not bring himself to take his eyes off Kai’s. Blood coagulated up his throat, choking it. His body felt as if it had taken an immense blow. “What… _did_ you and I have?” the words sounded lifeless just as he was.

Kai shot him a look that was incomprehensible. Was he taken aback? Was he surprised? Or was he just pleased? Whatever it was, he did not reply. He took a step closer to Adrian instead. “He’s not gonna be happy about this, you know.”

“I know.” Adrian muttered. “Not all of us have the willpower to fight his sire bond, Kai. The most I could do annoy him.” he sniggered. “I cleared the mess you made upstairs. You owe me another one.” He patted on Kai’s shoulder before walking past him.

“Are you leaving again?”

“I… have some unfinished business to take care of back at Jackson.”

Kai nodded his head knowingly. “All the best.”

“Keep an eye on Lenz for me, won’t you?”

“I’m not his favourite uncle.”

“Just make sure… Vance doesn’t…” he trailed off.

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure he doesn’t.”

Adrian flashed a suppressed smile and his eyes shifted to Sehun. “You won’t regret coming back here, Sehun. Fight all you want, but you both need a proper closure.”

“So do you and Jongin.” Kai interrupted with a scowl.

 _He and Jongin?_ Sehun blinked.

“All right.” Adrian walked away without sparing them another glance.

Kai did not say a word further as he started up the stairs. Sehun stood there, staring at his back wondering if Kai would stop. But he did not. None of this made sense. If Kai were so important that Vance had to make Sehun forget all about him, then why did Kai not react as he should have? If they had the strong bond that Sehun had imagined a minute ago, then why did Kai not care? He did not seem to be even bothered by Sehun showing up. Did anything happen between them at all or was it just Sehun imagining things?

“Wait.” He whispered and Kai stopped in his tracks at the middle of the stairs. He only turned his head halfway around and eyed Sehun sideways. “Who… are you?”

Kai turned around and faced Sehun properly. His black shirt—unbuttoned at the top—was half tucked into his skin-tight black pants and the other half messily hanged loose. “Who am I?” he scoffed. “You don’t know who I am? Or… you don’t remember who I am, Sehun?”

“What’s that supposed mean? I know your… brother. I assume that… we knew each other, too.” Sehun felt himself shudder.

“Yeah. Yeah.” Kai laughed a little. “We _knew_ each other.” The laugh died. Kai looked away for a moment and rubbed his temples. “Guess we’re just strangers now, huh?”

“Vance did this.” Sehun rasped, edging closer to the bottom of the stairs. “He did this! I don’t know how much or what more he had done, but he made me lose… my… memories.” His eyes burned faster than his lungs.

“Yes. I’m aware, Sehun. But what were you doing all these years?”

Sehun kept mum but his lips stayed parted as if he were waiting for an answer to roll off his tongue.

Kai pursed his lips and inclined his head back before heaved a long sigh. “You were with Jongin.”

“So?”

“Do me a favour. Do us both a favour. Don’t ask Vance to reverse whatever he’s done to you.”

“What?”

“I don’t want you to have to choose anymore, Sehun.”

“What are you talking about?!” he lost it. “I don’t know who you even are but I feel like I’ve known you for all my life! All of you are acting as if nothing had happened! You’re all very nonchalant but I’m very certain that something has happened!”

“Yeah. Something did happen, Sehun. I’m fighting my sire bond to Vance because my love for my mate is stronger than any fucking sire bond! But you couldn’t fight a bit of duress Vance inflicted on you. You know why? ‘Cause you love Jongin. You love him too. But like I said, I’m done. I won’t ask you to make a choice. So for your own good, don’t ask him to undo what he’s done.”

Sehun opened his mouth to rebut, but then he realized how comfortable it felt to argue with Kai, to be at variance with him even when he had just met him. “That’s not for you to decide.” He murmured tiredly.

Kai scoffed. “You’re still the same. Stubborn as ever. Just know that, when you get your memories back, I’m not the same man you once knew.”

Sehun could not utter a word against that as Kai bolted up the rest of the steps before vanishing out of sight. Burying his face in his hands, Sehun scrubbed it. _You love him too…_

He glanced around the entrance hall. His heart clenched. The manor still looked the same, as it had been fifty years ago. Red tapestries and maroon carpets and wood. The crystal chandelier that hung in pride directly above Sehun preened on eastern Mediterranean honour. Vance liked being conventional. Sehun dragged his feet up the flight of stairs with his head clouded. Kai seemed okay. Vance seemed okay. More than okay. None of them looked surprised or shocked at Sehun’s outburst. It was as if they had been expecting it. He dropped to sit on the top step before burrowing his face in his knees.

Answers led to questions. Questions were not leading him back to answers.

 

* * *

 

“And this painting is from the 12th century renaissance.” Vance stopped before the portrait with his fingers laced at the back. Although his eyes were set on the painting, his concentration was fixated on the human boy who maintained a three feet distance between them at all times. His confusion amused Vance to a level that he almost chortled. But he did not. Would this boy even look straight at him if he knew the man he was talking to was around a thousand years old? Not to mention the fact he also fed on humans like him. “Did you know that the 12th century renaissance saw the greatest changes at the outset of the High Middle Ages?”

No response.

“Ever heard of The Tale of Igor’s Campaign?” he asked keeping his gaze on the painting. “Old Eastern Slavic. It was very famous during the 12th century.” He met the poet himself, but Vance left the detail out. For some odd reason, he did not want to scare this human. Yet. “What did you say your name was?” he finally turned his head and met the boy’s scrutinizing eyes. It had been some while since Vance had been in the company of a boy who was dressed in a fleece shirt and ripped jeans with uncombed hair. Very… human-like.

“Chanyeol.” He answered with disdain and a scowl. Vance bit his lip to stop himself from smirking. The guy’s vexation was surprisingly an entertainment for him.

“Ah, yes. We’ve met before, haven’t we?”

“I don’t care, actually.” Chanyeol flashed a fake smile to mock Vance. “I think I should go back to Sehun.”

“Sehun will come to you when he wants to check on his friend again. Do not worry about him.”

“Yeah. About that…” he rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t worry about him. I’m actually worried for myself.”

Vance laughed despite himself. “I will not bite.” Yet.

“You definitely do seem… eccentric. Sorry. No offence.”

Vance’s eyes narrowed but his smile remained. “None taken.” He advanced a step forward and Chanyeol retreated one. “What makes you think that?”

“Well, for starters, you sound like you’re from ancient Europe. Secondly, you’re not royalty, are you?” he cringed. “You live in a freaking palace!”

“Not in the most literal sense, I would not say so.”

“Okay… So you’re not… a wolf either?”

“They’re beautiful creatures. But I’m not.”

“Right. So… what are you doing?”

“Excuse me?”

“Why are you giving me a tour around your place?”

“Oh, right. I forgot that you’ve just travelled for hours. And you’re human.” Vance muttered the last part out. “You must be tired. Should I show you your room?”

“You said you’ll clear my confusions.”

“I stand by my word, yes.”

Chanyeol blinked, arching his brows. “Then clear it!”

Vance could not help but smile. “You certainly are amusing.”

“Huh?”

“Not everyone can talk to me that way, you know?”

“Sehun just punched the shit out of you, though.”

“Sehun is my heir. He has… anger management issues. This way. I’ll show you to your room.” Vance spun around and began to trudge.

“ _Heir?_ ” Chanyeol simpered and laughed out loud.

Vance turned once again, this time, with a dead grave expression. “We’re Vampires, Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol licked his lips, staring down at Vance’s blue eyes. “Yeah?” he breathed out.

“I’m about a thousand years old. Sehun’s over 70.”

“I’m… Tinkerbell.” Chanyeol scoffed, rolling his eyes.

Vance’s eyebrows furrowed and he almost cocked his head to the side in entertainment. “Join me for dinner, will you?”

Chanyeol shrugged. “What’s for dinner?”

Vance did not answer as he walked away. A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.


	8. Seven

A ruthlessly lavish manor on top of one of the greatest hill in Transylvania, the birth place of Vance Vaughn. A title no one had yet dared to challenge. A magnificence that was never questioned. None of this Sehun coveted. The once frail fingers now had the strength crush bones at a single touch. And yet, he wanted them to touch his lover, to feel his hair, his skin, his lips. Maybe he was hankering for the wrong things. Mayhap he should have coveted everything that Vance was and had. The fact that he did not fancy any of Vance’s lifestyles was probably the incentive which drove Vance to choose another heir—a stronger, a more determined heir who apparently was consumed by the thirst for Vance’s position. Sehun’s hand ghosted over the ledge of the window as he drew his gaze aimlessly across the blanket of trees that surrounded a fair perimeter of the manor. The night had set upon them. A cold spider had spread its long legs on Sehun’s heart.

His room was as it was when he left it three years ago. Untouched. But it felt different.

He had lost himself at the point where grief and gaiety met, where melody and poem joined. An eternity of emptiness. Empty. There was no better description to recount his existence. Empty.

“What do you want?” he asked tiredly, turning his head slightly, but not enough to actually see Kai standing at the doorway.

“What did you enjoy more, Sehun?” was Kai’s question as he stepped into the bedroom. Sehun turned and faced this familiar face, but an unknown person.

“What?”

Kai picked up the paperweight from the side table and fiddled with it for a moment. He was neat now. Red shirt, black pants, sleek shoes. His shirt was tidily tucked in, sleeves rolled to his elbows. The wrist watch portrayed his exquisite taste. Sehun definitely did not know _this_ man. But he was certain that he knew Kai. Just not _this_ Kai. He replaced the paperweight on the table and strutted to the bookshelf. “ _Who_ did you enjoy more?” he asked, surveying the books on the shelf.

“I’m not following.”

“No, of course not.” He sighed and finally met Sehun’s eyes. “If you had felt anything genuine for me at all, you would have believed me. You would have believed _in_ me.”

Sehun’s lips parted, but nothing came out.

“Sehun.” he murmured, lowering his gaze. “Why did you come here?”

“You know why, don’t you?” Sehun challenged.

“Adrian told you that I’m here. But you definitely didn’t come here because I’m here. Why did you come?”

“I…” he looked away for a moment. “I needed answers.”

“What for?”

“What are you fishing for?”

Another loud sigh. “What were you hoping to seek? These answers you’re talking about. Why do they matter? Would they change anything? Would you stop loving Jongin if you knew the truth?”

“What truth?”

Kai bit his lip and slowly shook his hung head. “You won’t, Sehun. It’s not about what Vance forced you to forget. No matter what, you _do_ love Jongin. So don’t try. Go home. You have the life you’ve always wanted. Jongin can give it to you.”

“If you’ve something to say, just say it. I’ve had enough of these mind games. I’m really tired.” Sehun could feel the tears stinging the back of his eyes.

“I really hate you, Sehun. My entire life changed because of you and here you are, thinking that you’ve had nothing to do with it.”

“Kai. I don’t know who you are. Whose fault is that? I can remember you again if Vance lets me. And you’re not exactly cooperating.”

“That’s because I don’t want you to remember who I was to you, Sehun.” the despairing tone of his voice itself said it all. He was lost at the point where grief and gaiety met, too. Deep within Sehun, he felt this rush, this unbelievable relief and unexplainable happiness the second he saw Kai. He now knew Kai felt it, too. “The mind can be manipulated, Sehun. Not the heart.” Kai clasped a hand over his mouth and rubbed his jaw, sucking in a deep sigh. “In the past couple of years, many things changed, Sehun. For both of us, I think. You settled down. You didn’t have to make a choice anymore.”

“Wait.” Sehun raised his hand to stop him. “Just tell me this one thing. Did I make a choice? Before Vance wiped my memory of you?”

Kai remained silent.

“Kai?”

“Sehun…”

Sehun nodded and let out a lifeless laugh. “I _did_ make a choice. And it’s not Jongin, was it?”

“I—”

“What happened between us?! Do you know how torturous it is to imagine all these possibilities in my head when I know that none of them is guaranteed to be the truth?!”

“I’m making things easier for you, Sehun. You don’t have to be involved in this madness anymore. Don’t you see? Vance will never cease to use you to his own entertainment. He’s the puppeteer here! He’s the puppet master, Sehun. He’s lived for a thousand years, he needs a drive to keep him going. The only reason he sent you to Jackson was for his own amusement. Nothing more! He did not want the town back. Everything he told you had been a lie! I wouldn’t be surprised if he was the one who even led your father to Jackson.”

“What are you talking about?” Sehun felt the sob choking his throat.

“He’s a fucking sociopath! Unless I put a stop to his atrocity, he’s not gonna let any of us live. Can you not see? He claims to have liberated you, Sehun. But to be honest, you will forever be sired to him. You will forever have to serve him.”

Sehun shook his head, blinking the tears away. “You…” he scrubbed his face with his palm and wiped his eyes. “You can’t beat him, Kai. You… can fight the sire bond, yes. But it has happened before. You’re not his first hybrid.”

“I’m aware. My loyalty will always be to my pack and my mate first. That is the only inducement I have to fight this sire bond.”

“If Vance knows about this, he will destroy your pack, Kai.”

“He can try. He might be a thousand years old Vampire. I’m still stronger than him.”

“And then what?”

Kai licked his lips, remaining unresponsive for a stretch before he muttered, “And then nothing. You’ll be the Count. And I’ll… I’ll just leave.”

“What? Adrian told me—”

“That I’m going to be Count. That is because Vance is expecting you to be out of the way. Why do you think he wants me to be his heir? Because you wouldn’t stand a chance against me.”

“He wants you to kill me.” The words came out as a whisper.

“When the time comes, yes.” He suddenly looked over his shoulder. “I won’t.” He muttered as Sehun heard the footsteps edging closer.

The butler bowed, stopping in front of the door. “The Count is looking for you to join him for dinner.”

Kai did not utter another word as he spun around and left the room. Sehun wanted to lower himself to the floor and curl into a ball, but he knew he would not be able to. He could barely move his feet as he attempted to drag himself out of the bedroom.

Sehun did not know when was the last time he had been in the dining hall—probably decades ago. The three crystal chandeliers were just as bright as the smile that was beaming on Chanyeol’s face. He was seated right across Vance, on the other end of the 20 seaters’ dining table. Sehun’s eyes raked the ridiculous amount of dishes on the table, but the only food that would be appetizing for them was Chanyeol. He sat there with his hair damp from a fresh shower. Kai took his seat on a random chair and flashed a short smile at Chanyeol. “How are you Chanyeol?” he asked.

“I’m… fine, Kai.” Chanyeol croaked out. “How… are… you?”

“What do you think?” Kai snickered, helping himself to the soup.

“You look… fine.” He chuckled. “More than fine, actually.” He looked up at the servant who served him to thank him. “Thanks. I’m still quite confused as to how you’re related to Sehun’s… father.”

Vance was sneering now as he took a sip of the wine. That was the last straw.

Sehun flumped on a chair and eyed the servant who immediately walked over to him. “Well, Chanyeol.” Sehun sighed. “You see, Vance is not exactly my father.”

“Oh yeah. I know. Foster dad.”

Sehun grabbed hold of the servant’s hand and raised his wrist to his lips. “More or less.” He murmured before sinking his fangs into the servant’s wrist. The entire hall fell into utter silence except for Chanyeol’s ragged breathing. Pulling the wrist away from his mouth, Sehun held it over the empty wine glass to let the metallic fluid ooze and fill it. Chanyeol did nothing but stare at the trickling blood with his jaw slacked and eyes bulged out. “As to how Kai is related to him—well, that’s a tad convoluted to explain plainly.” He grinned at the servant once the glass was half filled. Pressing the mouth of the glass to his lower lip, Sehun fixated his eyes on Vance who was watching him with a clenched jaw and furrowed eyebrows. “Isn’t that right, Vance?” he sucked in a sip of the blood before facing Chanyeol again. “Apparently, Vance transformed Kai into a hybrid—Werewolf and a Vampire. He brought him away. Of course, I can’t know about it. So he erased my memories of everything that had happened. You said that I used to know Kai, right? What were we, Chanyeol?” his tone turned deep and grave at the end. Chanyeol’s lips and hands began to tremble as he gaped at Sehun, completely traumatized. “Speak.”

“I-I… I… I d-d-don’t kn... know.” Chanyeol’s voice came out as a raspy breath before he shot up until the chair was knocked back. Grabbing the vase before him, he pulled the flowers out and spewed into it. Kai scoffed, shaking his head and leaned back against his chair, tossing Sehun a curious look. Once he was done throwing up, the servant tore the flower vase from Chanyeol’s hand. “What the hell… is going on?”

“Sehun’s acting like a child. That’s what’s going on.” Vance spat and rose from his seat before bolting to Chanyeol’s side. Chanyeol staggered back and almost crashed the ground before he held onto the table for support.

“Stay away from me!”

It did not take a second for Sehun to jolt around the table and put himself between Vance and Chanyeol. He grabbed Vance by his neck without a warning and raised him from the ground before smashing him on the table, on the food, on the plates, on the glasses until every last one of them shattered upon impact. Vance groaned, but did not fight it when Sehun yanked him off the table only to slam him against the wall. “Only I can hurt you.”

Vance smiled through the momentary pain as Sehun’s hand tightened around his neck. “Only _you,_ Sehun.” he gasped. “But I’m surprised. You’ve grown stronger.”

Sehun released Vance’s neck even if he did not want to. “Tell me what you did to me, Vance!”

“Why don’t you ask Kai?” Vance bent down, hand rubbing his neck. “Shall I undo whatever that I did to him, Kai?” he asked, straightening back up. Kai pulled himself up and walked away without saying a word. His hands were tight fists as he strutted away. “He doesn’t want you to remember, Sehun. And I promise. I only made you forget everything that happened between you and him. If he no longer wants you, then what’s the deal? But if you must know, then fine.” Vance sighed. “He loved you. And then minute you forgot about him, you knew you were in love with Jongin. That’s what happened. You broke him.”

Sehun retreated a step. “You’re bluffing.”

“I most certainly am not. I can assure you that the very fact that you had always been in love with Jongin is what broke him. All you needed was to forget a distraction, that was him, and you were back on the right track. You realized you were in love with Jongin. After everything that he went through for you, you still chose Jongin. That’s what happened, Sehun. I can undo the compulsion. I can make you remember. But what good will that do? You will have to only live with the regret and guilt of not choosing one of them. You’ve made your choice. You were given a life. So instead of wasting it here, return.”

Sehun wiped his cheek and glanced over at the hallway in which Kai had disappeared. Without leaving a reply, he broke into a lightning sprint to get out of there.

 

* * *

 

“Are you all right?” the instant Vance took a step forward, Chanyeol withdrew a step.

“Stay away!”

“I told you I’m a Vampire.” Vance sighed with mental exhaustion and inspected his clothes. “I ought to change.”

“You’re… you’re worrying about a wardrobe malfunction now?! Are you going to eat me?!”

“No!” he yapped. “Not anymore.” A shrug.

Chanyeol’s bloodshot eyes were raving for solutions. He did not know what to do. Vance smiled. “Vampires…” he breathed out. “I can’t… wrap my mind… around all this. What the fuck…”

“Werewolves aren’t the superior race.” Vance slowly extended an arm and curled his hand around Chanyeol’s arm. “Calm down. I will not hurt you.”

“Oh my God!” he yanked his arm away. “How old are you?! For real?!”

Vance licked his lips. “You would not want to know.”

“I do!”

“I really am around a thousand years old, Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol blinked. “You’re shitting me.”

“No. I’m not.”

“Fuck.” He started to pace the room, scratching his head. “Do you people have superpowers?!”

“Yes.”

“You eat humans.”

“We drink blood. There’s a distinct difference between eating humans and drinking their blood.”

“Same thing! How could you not tell me?!”

“But I did.”

“And to come to think of it, I thought you were some hot DILF!”

Vance’s eyes widened. “I beg your pardon?”

“No, scratch that.” Chanyeol glowered, clenching his hands into fists. “I need to leave.” He decided and frantically started towards the entrance before Vance overtook him in the blink of an eye. “Whoa! Stop doing that!”

“Don’t leave.” He sighed.

“Yeah, I ain’t gonna stay for you to just suck my blood out when I’m asleep.”

“No, Chanyeol. If I were interested in your blood, I can assure you that you would be lying in your grave in my backyard by now.”

Chanyeol gulped. He stared into Vance’s icy blue eyes for a moment before shaking his head and shoved past him.

 

* * *

 

It took Sehun more than half an hour to find Kai on the balcony of a room—which he assumed was Kai’s room. He took the liberty to enter the dark room. Bookshelves adorned the room and Sehun wondered if Kai had read every last one of the books that inhibited the shelves. He certainly did not look like the type that read books. Sehun came to a stop. Kai was leaning over the railings of the balcony, gazing up at the night sky.

“Man can do what he wills but he cannot will what he wills.” He breathed out and Sehun felt his heart swell. Kai’s voice sounded everything like Jongin’s. The voice that Sehun had grown to love. The voice that lulled him into the dark abyss of love that he did not want to escape.

“Arthur Schopenhauer.” Sehun murmured, forcing his feet to move forward.

“Der Mensch kann tun was er will, er kann aber nicht wollen was er will.” Kai scoffed, hanging his head when Sehun stepped onto the balcony.

“You keep surprising me.” Those four words completed the sentence even if it made no sense. It felt right to say them.

Kai smiled a smile that spelled his sadness, his _grief._ “I want you, Sehun.” he looked up at Sehun with a suppressed smile and glistening eyes. “I wanted you.” he said and hung his head again. “We can’t rewind what’s happened. What we _can_ do is move on. You already have. I’m sorry Adrian had to mess things up for you again.”

Sehun raised a hand to Kai’s shoulder and clasped it. Kai brought his head up and locked their eyes together. “Who did I choose, Kai?”

Kai pursed his lips. Sehun took his face into his hands and swiped his thumbs along Kai’s cheekbones. “You chose Jongin, Sehun. Vance told me that after he had made you forget about me, you realized that you loved Jongin.”

“I could have been in love with both of you.”

“Even so, Jongin is a far better choice for you, Sehun. I’m no good for you… You should leave.” He pulled Sehun’s hands off his face and started back into the room.

“I’m your mate, aren’t I?”

Kai stopped on his tracks. “Yes, Sehun. And I will always stand by the promises I made you. Which is why you need to stay away from me. You don’t need to be dragged along with me.”

“Stop. Please, wait. At least let me remember, Kai.”

“You would have remembered if your feelings for me were strong enough, Sehun. But you shared them with Jongin, too.”

“Okay. So what do you want me to do? Leave?”

Kai’s eyes glimmered under the moonlight as they stared at Sehun’s. “That’d be the best choice for both of us now.”

Sehun sank his teeth into his lower lip, nodding slowly. “Okay.” He let out and started past Kai. Just when he had crossed him, Kai caught his arm and forcefully yanked him back before cupping both sides of Sehun’s face. Blood pounded in his ears when Kai leaned in out of the sudden and their lips almost touched.

“Tell me. Straight to my face.” Kai breathed against Sehun’s lips. “Say that you love Jongin.”

Sehun knew he loved Jongin. But did he want to tell Kai that? Rub salt on his wound? “I… do… love him, Kai.” He pressed his palms onto Kai’s chest. “It feels like I’ve known you for ages. Like I know every part of your body, every part of _you._ ” his hands rose up his chest and curled around Kai’s shoulders. “And yet, I don’t know who you are.”

 


	9. Eight

_The frantic search within him. The search for freedom. For love. For life. The search for an escape route that will bring him far away from this Hell. The minute Vance had stepped foot in this town, he saw the search, the drive, the incentive within this peculiar boy who had every chance at purloining and looting from the bread shop he worked in, and yet, he, not once, had ever took advantage of the trust the shopkeeper had had in him. The boy answered to the name Oh Sehun. Although in strained circumstances, never had this boy left the family that relied solely on his efforts. His indigence, his trustworthiness, his search were bound to benefit Vance. The boy possessed the qualities Vance looked for. All it took were few glances, some insincere words, and several touches. Sehun was bewitched._

_He frantically looked around the spot—the usual spot. One tall tree to the left. One taller tree to the right. Dried vines straight ahead. Dandelion stalks scattered on the ground. This was their spot. Vance silently stood, leaned against a tree with his arms crossed over his chest and hair dripping beads of new-fangled rainwater. Licking the rain off his own smirking lips, Vance advanced towards Sehun._

_He slowly snaked his hands around Sehun’s head from behind and covered his eyes. Sehun let out a puff of laugh and clung onto the wrists of his hands. Vance leaned closer to the back of Sehun’s neck. “Why are you not wrapped well?!” he breathed, withdrawing his hands and swiftly wrapped his coat around Sehun’s lithe body._

_“You will be cold now.” Sehun murmured, turning to face Vance._

_“I can handle it. Happy birthday.” Vance clasped his hands on either sides of Sehun’s face and leaned in again before his lips touched the rain drops on Sehun’s lower lip. Letting out a shaky breath against Vance’s lips, Sehun curled his hands around Vance’s shirt pulled him into a deeper kiss._

_“Where is my gift?” he whispered, pulling away from the kiss._

_Smiling smugly, Vance took a step back, pulling Sehun’s hands off his shirt. “Remember when I promised I will take you away from here?”_

_“Yes.” Vance saw the stars in Sehun’s brown eyes. “Vance, are we… running away?” he asked with both excitement and desolation. “I… I must tell my mother. I can’t leave my sister.”_

_“Wait. Do not rush, my love.” every word was sweet, glazed with icing. None that Vance meant. None that he said out of love for Sehun. “It will be very simple. Once I’m done, you will willingly leave them without any hardship.” His hands came up to Sehun’s cheeks again._

_“Wh-what do you mean?”_

_“Will you do as I say?”_

_Sehun did not hesitate even for a second when he nodded his head. “Of course.”_

_Suppressing a smile, Vance pulled a hand to his mouth and sank his fangs into the wrist. Sehun watched. He did nothing but watch. With wide, curious eyes. “Here.” Vance held his bleeding wrist out._

_He still watched._

_“Sehun, drink my blood.” Vance ordered calmly._

_“Why?” his whisper stunned Vance for a moment. He did not say no. He was not going to say no, Vance realized. But why, he asked._

_“It’ll become apparent. Do as I say if you wish to be with me for all your life.”_

_A swallow of the blood. A snap of the neck. A kiss on the forehead to send the old soul off._

Vance had kept his word. Sehun was going to be with him for all his life. And not once had Sehun ever disobeyed him. Until he chose to transgress when he set to nought by siding with the Werewolves and fail in the task Vance had assigned him with. He chose Jongin and Kai over pleasing his sire. Sehun was wrong if he thought that he was going to get away scot-free after defying Vance. For the first time. Vance destroyed a part of Sehun the minute he made him forget Kai and implanted the idea that he loved Jongin into his mind. He was not vindictive. But Vance certainly was magisterial. He prevented Sehun from having the life that Sehun had wanted to build for him. Everything that Sehun was living right now was what Vance had constructed for him. He was… the puppet master.

The door was unlocked when he turned the knob. When he pushed it open, he found Chanyeol on the floor, hugging his knees to his chest, leaned back against the foot of the bed. He was staring at the black screen of the TV with swollen, sleepless eyes. Vance smoothened the pale blonde strands of his hair and took the liberty of invading the room. Chanyeol was aware of his presence, but he did not lift his head up to even look at Vance. “Good morning.” Vance muttered, darting his ocean-blue eyes to the balcony which poured morning sunlight into the gloomy room. He lowered his gaze to Chanyeol again. “Are we not on speaking terms?”

Chanyeol slowly brought his head up and scowled at Vance. “We’re technically not on _any_ terms.” His voice was deeper and hoarser than usual. “I wanna leave.”

“I am not sure you want that. Truly.” Vance’s smirk must have irritated Chanyeol because the latter’s scowl deepened. “Chanyeol, let me show you around.” He saw a search in Chanyeol’s eyes. The same search he saw in Sehun’s eyes. But unlike Sehun, Chanyeol was looking for a thrill. For an adventure. A rush. “Have you… rode horses?”

“Have you been to Jackson?” Chanyeol scoffed and rose to his full height. “I want to see Sehun.”

Vance held an arm out. “Please. You are welcomed to roam the manor as you please.”

“Yeah, except that this place is bigger than freaking Buckingham. I couldn’t find him.”

“Ah. Well, why don’t you wait a tad, then? Perhaps…” Vance gently placed a hand on Chanyeol’s arm. “We could have a little breakfast, seeming that you had nothing to eat last night. Then… we could pay a visit to the stables.”

“No, thanks. I want to go home.” He shifted, shying away from Vance’s touch.

“All right.” He dropped his hand. “I just thought maybe you’d like to climb the mountains. Or rock-climb.”

Chanyeol’s eyes widened.

“But I suppose, not. It was nice having you here, Chanyeol.” He turned around.

“Wait.”

A smile pulled Vance’s lips as he kept his back facing Chanyeol. “Yes?”

“If you’re… thousands years old… you were around… when Genghis Khan was alive?”

Vance bit his lip to stifle back a laugh. He met Chanyeol’s half annoyed, half amused expression. “I’ve _met_ him personally.”

“Fuck no.”

“Yes. In fact, his general and I were rather… close friends.”

“You’re pulling my leg.”

“Well, Chanyeol. That is not the wonderment that’s taken place in the course of my life. If you are interested, I will delightedly entertain you. Guaranteed, that you will not be harmed for as long as you are a guest here.”

Chanyeol scoffed. “That’s fat, coming from a… _Vampire._ ”

“You’re taking this rather well, if you ask me.”

“Yeah. ‘Cause I pretty much witnessed some shit before.” He flumped on the end of the bed and wiped his forehead. “Wait, you have you _own_ stables?!”

 

* * *

 

“My noble partner, you greet with present grace and great prediction of noble having and of royal hope, that he seems rapt withal. To me you speak not. If you can look into the seeds of time and say which grain will grow and which will not speak, then, to me, who neither beg nor fear your favors nor your hate.” Sehun lowered the book as his throat burned upon every word that he had uttered as quietly as the morning breeze. He languidly drew his fingertips along _‘into the seeds of time’_. Time was a field of seeds. Full of recourses of the future. Which seeds will grow? These seeds, these _futures_ can be affected. Should they be watered, nurtured, they will bear fruit. Should they be neglected, the field would become nothing but a field of emptiness.

He got off the bed and dragged his feet to the bookshelf. He returned the book to its original place. Macbeth was a tragic hero. The only inducement which drove Macbeth to his fall was greed. He was blinded by his ambition and the avarice for power. Kai was now blinded by his ambition. He will not win against Vance. He might be stronger, he might be more determined. But Vance was smart. Sehun doubted that Vance would not have a backup plan. His heart clenched and he dropped his gaze with a hand clinging onto the shelf. He should leave. He had to leave. There was nothing for him to do here anymore. He should go back to Jongin. That was the _seed_ that awaited him.

His eyes were fixed on the luggage that was all ready and packed for a moment. If he left now, he will never regain his memories. A part of him will forever be forgotten. That was what Kai wanted. He was convinced that Sehun loved Jongin because as soon as Sehun was made to forget Kai, he realized his love for Jongin. So what happened before that? Sehun could take a darn good guess. He probably hooked up with Kai. Probably. There was no explicit evidence to prove that he and Kai had ever been together, but Sehun did not even want to dig any deeper for the evidences. If Kai did not want this, then Sehun was better off not knowing. So, he should leave.

He retreated to the windows and pressed a palm onto the warm glass.

“The people that I’ve left, the ones that I’ve kept.”

“You didn’t leave anyone, Sehun.” Kai said, walking into the room. “I did.”

Sehun shook his head and closed his eyes for a second before turning around. Kai kept his hands in the pockets of faded blue jeans with his hair still damp and messy from morning shower. Sehun almost smiled. “I left many people, Kai. My family… my mom… sister. Now I left Jongin.”

“You can go back to him.” Kai’s voice was low.

“You don’t mean that, do you?” Sehun sadly smiled.

Kai was mum for a long minute before shaking his head. “No.” he muttered. “I never mean that, Sehun. I can never fucking mean it. I want you. All for myself. But it’s impossible. Are you ready to betray Jongin for something that you’re not sure of?”

Sehun sighed. “Okay. You want me to leave. I’ll leave. It’s probably the best for us all.”

“Uhm… I’m… going to see Lenz. Do you… wanna come?”

“Lenz? Adrian’s son?”

“Yep. The one and only little rascal.” Kai turned on his heel and stormed out of the room. Sehun buttoned his shirt up and hurried after him.

“He doesn’t live here?”

“Oh, he does. Vance keeps him locked away. Little Rapunzel.”

“What? Why?”

“Because he doesn’t want him hurt. Or… because he wants a leverage to use against Adrian so that Adrian, too, won’t turn against him or try to break the sire bond.”

Sehun’s eyebrows knotted into a glower. “You seriously can’t mean it.”

Kai smirked and shrugged, eyeing Sehun from top to toe before returning his gaze back to the hallway ahead. “You live a fantasy where no one is bad, Sehun.”

“That’s not true.”

“Really? You saw the good in _me!_ How ridiculous is that?!” he laughed.

“You _are_ a good person, aren’t you?”

Kai shot him a surprised look. “You’re unbelievable. I’m not a good person, Sehun. Neither are you nor Jongin, nor Vance, nor Adrian. We all deserve to rot in hell, which explains why we’re all where we are right now.”

“Really? You think Lenz is bad, too?”

Kai’s jaw tightened. “I didn’t—”

“Well, what wrong did he do to be where is he right now?”

There was no answer. Sehun noticed Kai’s hands balling into fists. “On the other hand, I think I’d like to eat something first.” Kai came to an abrupt halt. “I’m famished. You? Do you still feed on blood bags or…?”

“Do you ever miss Jongin?” Sehun blurted out as they stood alone in the middle of the portrait-bordered hallway, facing each other.

“What?”

“No. Nothing. Forget about it.” Sehun waved him off and began to walk again. It took Kai a moment to follow after him. They walked in silence as they climbed the stairs leading up to the third floor.

“This is hilarious.” Kai snorted after a long stretch of quietude.

Sehun halted on the steps. “What is?”

“This. Me. You. No one would have guessed that we’d come this far.” He snickered.

“Really?”

Kai lifted his shoulders and let out, “We weren’t exactly affectionate material, you know?” he winked.

Sehun stared at him for an instant before proceeding up the stairs. When he reached the top, he turned around and asked, “Why?”

“Why?”

“Why are you telling me this if you don’t want me to remember?”

He shrugged again. “I just recalled all the Vampire jokes and insults I used to tell you.”

Sehun’s face turned sour. “You insulted me?”

“Sehun.” Kai laughed. “I did more than just _insult_ you.” his shoulder bumped Sehun’s as he marched by. “Who knew I’d be a Vampire myself.” He scoffed. “It’s karma.”

“You don’t seem like you’re complaining, though.”

“I’m not. I like being a hybrid. So much power. So much dominance.”

Sehun came to a jerky stop. _The dominating tier tries to oppress his mate once he had found one. This is by either challenging his mate or proving to his mate that he is the superlative dominant and his mate is submissive. When challenged by the mate, it evokes further interest to dominate the mate._

_“Maybe I should have left a mark for Jongin to see. You were almost as weak as you are now last night.”_

_It didn’t do to let someone with an ego like Kai’s know how much power he had over Sehun who surely did not want to be dominated by someone like Kai. But here he was, hoping that Kai would crush him, subjugate him under his dominance and show him that he was protected at the same time. After just a few delicate touches of Kai’s warm lips on his neck, his hands started to do Kai’s bidding. They moved from Kai’s hair and fell on Kai’s back, clutching the slick jacket as Sehun’s head swam, all previous thoughts stopped in their tracks. How did the bloodthirst to get rid of one another change into something so dangerously inviting. Now there was only one desire, one wish, and they both knew it was just a matter of time before it would happen._

_In a pain that was so beautiful. He could feel the warmth of Kai’s breath brushing his upper lip as he pulled back from the chaste kiss._

_“You can hate me tomorrow.” Kai exhaled against his lips. The night Sehun was at his weakest._

“You coming?” Kai’s loud voice that echoed through the corridor slapped Sehun and dragged him back to reality. He almost gasped at the graphic images that had flashed before his eyes. Sehun lurched towards Kai with a jolt and grabbed Kai’s shirt by the chest before shoving him up the wall. “Urgh.. fuck.” He groaned, wincing with the frame of the painting his back was slammed against cracking. “What… are you doing?” he snarled, hands ferociously curling around Sehun’s wrists while Sehun fisted his shirt.

“So much dominance, huh? There are certain things you cannot dominate, Kai. And that frustrates you, doesn’t it?”

Kai snapped his lips shut and glared at Sehun with flaring nostrils and a lockjaw. Then out of the sudden, he yanked Sehun’s grip off his shirt and gave Sehun a rough shove until the latter was jammed up the wall behind. Kai straightened his shirt and edged closer with a baffled, but furious expression. “What do you mean?”

 _Good. Provoke him, Sehun_. “You’re just butt-hurt. Jongin won over you, dominated you in so many ways, didn’t he? You didn’t want to stick around to fight a fight that you knew you’ll lose. So you ran away. Like a coward. That’s why you don’t want me to remember, is that not it?!”

Kai sniggered before outright laughing. “Are you listening to yourself, Sehun? Jongin stands no chance against me.”

“Really? ‘Cause as far as I see it, he’s the First Alpha. And by what you said, I presume you knew you would not win a fair fight with Jongin when it comes to my love.”

“I loved you!” he pinned Sehun to the wall. Both Kai’s hands were pressed on either sides of Sehun’s head on the wall. Sehun had no choice but to look into Kai’s raging eyes. “With all my heart, with everything that I had and everything that I could give you! You still chose him! Had it been Jongin the night I killed your fucking father, had it been him who bashed you senseless, you would have trusted him! You wouldn’t have doubted him like you doubted me! Because you know why? ‘Cause you always had this big question mark when it comes to me! This _doubt!_ Am I not right?!You never believed that I was good. You knew that one day, I’ll show my true self. And you knew you wouldn’t want to be with that true self. Jongin was the safest option, wasn’t he?! Wasn’t he?!” The pound of his fist on the wall quaked the insides of Sehun’s head.

He shuddered when Kai shouted, his eyes turning onyx-black. His mouth, throat, lungs were drained dry. Kai’s chest was almost pressed against his own and Sehun could taste Kai’s frustration on the tip of his tongue. He slowly brought a palm to Kai’s abdomen and pressed it against his abs. Kai shook his head and began to pull Sehun’s hand away before Sehun clutched his shirt by the abs. “No. Don’t push me away like last night.” He pleaded.


	10. Nine

He could feel Kai trembling with an unforgiving air rage against him. Unlike Sehun, Kai’s body was neither warm nor cold. It felt lukewarm, like a curtain separating the two unlikely worlds. This man, this rough rogue, whom Sehun no longer recognized was capable of clenching his heart without even trying, with just a mere gaze. If Kai were capable of doing such a thing even when Sehun had no memories of him, it was only understandable that what they must have shared was unbreakable without a shadow of doubt. “I want my memories back.” he decided, defeated by Kai’s glare. “And I’m not leaving until I do.”

Kai’s scowl faltered, slowly replaced by a look of deceive and surprise. They were close enough for their foreheads to brush, for their lips to touch. Sehun could feel Kai’s abs flex under his hands and hear the tightening of Kai’s fist on the wall next to his head. “And _then_ what, Sehun?” his voice, a low growl, sent a jolt down Sehun’s spine. “I’d rather live like this, knowing that you don’t remember anything that happened between us. You will need to make a choice even after you’ve regained your memories, and you will end up breaking one of us. Again. I’m very selfish, Sehun.” his steady tone began to shiver. “I’m… scared. Scared of the extent I might go to if you… don’t… choose me. So please. Don’t do this. I lost you once. And I will lose you again. For a Werewolf, it’s worse than death itself. To live like this.” He almost lost his voice by the time he pulled away from Sehun. Consciously wiping his forehead, Kai pushed his hair back and bowed his head once. “I hope you understand… But of course, by the end of the day, you will do what makes _you_ happy. And I want you to be happy. But in the process, Sehun, you will hurting me. I can live with it. Jongin can’t. So just… do us all a favour and go back to him.”

Sehun supported himself upon the wall, trying to swallow and digest everything that Kai had just said. Jongin loved him. Kai loved him, too. Sehun knew that he loved Jongin. But who was he _in_ love with? He vacantly stared at Kai’s back as the latter walked away, head hung low. “Kai.” He called and Kai came to a halt, but did not turn. “Fine. All right.” He sighed. “If… you don’t think recovering my memories of you would do any of us any good, then how about… we start over?”

Kai did not make a reply immediately. But when he did, Sehun wished he had not. “And what of Jongin? You think cheating on him again would do us any good, then?”

“ _Again?_ No. I’m not… I don’t want to cheat on him. But I can’t live a life forever with a huge part of me missing. Do you think you’re the only one suffering here?”

“But I’m the only one who’s had something to lose, Sehun. Will you wait for me downstairs? I’d rather go and see Lenz on my own.” With that, he strutted away, unwilling to even hear Sehun out. He could walk away. Sehun could just turn his back to all of this and walk away. “

 

* * *

 

“Have you any family?” Vance drew his shades over his head and glanced straight ahead at Chanyeol who was chuckling with the butler, swinging the golf club in his hand. He casually shot Vance a gaze and shrugged.

“I’ve mom.” He answered, adjusting his pair of sunglasses before taking his ground near the teed up golf ball. He carefully aimed the club, swaying it with precision. “And a brother. He’s 13.”

“Hmm.” Vance rose from the grass and brushed the back of his legs. “Do they know you’re here?”

“Nah.” The clubface struck the ball and Chanyeol pulled his glasses up, eyes tracing the ball. “Shit! Gordon, not even a bogey!”

“That is because, sire, you are an urbanised teenager who’d rather spend his time bobbing his head to wild unhealthy music like you’re having a seizure, quite simply put, you are a hormonal boy that has misconceptions of how life functions.” The butler finished, poised and graceful as ever with his chin held high.

Chanyeol snorted. “You really do talk like Alfred Pennyworth.”

Both Vance and Gordon made no reply as they stared at him. “And who shall that be, sire?” Gordon asked out of obligation.

“What?! Alfred Pennyworth? Batman? Bruce Wayne’s butler?” his jaw dropped. “Wow. Anyway, are you any good?” he held the golf club out to Vance who instantly raised a hand in refusal.

“I am good. But I’d rather watch you make yourself a complete clod trying to perfect an angle of approach that you are unrecognized with.”

“Hey!” Chanyeol protested. “I’ve seen… Tiger Woods play, okay?! Piss off.” He turned to Gordon who placed another ball on the tee. “Who knew a small town boy like me would be friends with a guy that owns his own golf course and horses.” he muttered to himself, turning his back to Vance. A small smile of achievement formed on Vance’s eager lips. It would not take a genius to realize that he was trying to impress Chanyeol—a weak, ordinary human. But it had been some while since anyone particularly had intrigued him this much. For his _own_ personal interest at least. And by personal interest, Vance was unsure of what he wanted out of Chanyeol. All that he knew was that he wanted to be in Chanyeol’s good books. Never in his life had Vance ever wanted someone’s attention this desperately.

“How old are you?” Chanyeol asked, he gave the club and the ball another shot. “Ah for godsake, I’m terrible at this! Gordon, you try.”

“Uhm.” Vance started. “I’ve told you I’m…” he trailed off when Chanyeol turned all of his attention to Gordon instead. Grinding his teeth, his jaw locked and he lowered his shades back on before running his slender thin fingers through his hair.

“Your backswing is rather lazy, Mr Park.” The butler said, taking his position and swung the club. Vance licked his lips, glaring at Chanyeol who was gaping at Gordon who scored a perfect score.

“Damn, old man! You’ve got moves!”

“Gordon.” Vance called, tying his hands at the back. “Can you fetch me some blood?”

The butler bowed at once. “Right away, sire.” He handed the club back to Chanyeol before leaving them alone under the surprisingly scorching sun.

“So you don’t burn under the sun?” Chanyeol asked absent-mindedly and grabbed another golf ball.

“Actually—”

“Jesus Christ, it’s hot.” he rasped and peeled his jacket off. Vance bit his lip unable to keep his eyes to himself. The black t-shirt Chanyeol had donned perfectly outlined his prominent biceps. Vance’s eyes followed the bead of sweat that trickled down the side of Chanyeol’s neck.

“I’m—”

“I asked you, how old are you? In reality, I mean… when did you… ya know.” The fact that Chanyeol was not even facing him was driving Vance over the edge.

“I’m 26 if that’s what you’re fishing for.”

“Golfing in the afternoon? That’s a little too lavish, don’t you think?” Kai’s voice boomed from almost ten meters away before Vance turned around to meet Kai with an annoyed smile.

“Not everyone prefers to have a murder party as a hobby, Kai.” He chimed and his eyes darted to Sehun who was quietly following behind Kai. His face was wilted, eyes cruelly dead. Vance did not pull his attention away from Sehun even when Kai stopped right in front of him.

“Chanyeol, is he boring the angel out of you? We’re going out for a drink. Wanna come along?”

Chanyeol dropped the club and picked up his jacket at once. “Are you sure you want him to join?” Vance interrupted.

“Don’t worry. I’m talking about beer.”

“He can have beer here.”

“Well, he won’t have strippers here.” Kai draped an arm over Chanyeol’s shoulders. “Or hot chicks to rut tonight. Isn’t that right, mate?”

Vance did not bother to protest any more as they left him before Gordon showed up with a glass of blood. “Is there a problem, sire? You seem a tad under the weather.”

 

* * *

 

“So you’re not technically a Vampire?” Chanyeol whispered, taking another gulp of the beer. “Not like him?” he jerked his thumb over his shoulder, at Sehun who only stared at his beer bottle on the bar counter. An unfamiliar jazz music oozed in the background of the very conventional pub. He had never been here before, but it was nothing like what he had expected. It was not empty as he thought it would be. Instead, it was jam-packed with all sorts of men, from hunters to tourists. Sehun was vaguely aware of the little glances that Kai was shooting him from the minute they stepped into this place. If it weren’t for Chanyeol who sat between them, Sehun might have broken down. Kai was acting as if everything was okay. As if nothing can happen between them anymore.

“No.” Kai answered. “That’d be pretty lame.”

“Lame? Imagine how it’d be to be me right now.” Chanyeol scoffed and gazed over at Sehun for a brief second. “I should really be careful of who I make friends with from now on.”

Sehun sighed. “Chanyeol, you wanted to know. So I brought you here. Give me a break.” He spat and dropped his head again.

“Yeah, sure. I was definitely expecting you to drive me into the Dracula’s coffin.”

“Speaking of Dracula, you should know that Vance is the Count. Which makes him the… biggest baddest wolf.” said Kai, taking a sip of the beer.

“C-Count?”

Shaking his head, Sehun turned his attention the bartender who showed up with another beer bottle. Her red lips stretched into a mischievous grin as she pushed the bottle toward Sehun. “Happy Thanksgiving.” She purred, drawing a finger along the back of Sehun’s hand.

“Happy Thanksgiving.” He murmured and returned the smile before glancing over at Kai who was outright glaring at him. His forced smile changed into a smirk, but it quickly died when Sehun caught a whiff of foreign scent. He noticed Kai’s jaw clench but he did not turn a hair.

Sehun perked his head and spotted the guy who marched into the pub. Tall, broad-shouldered with an arrogant mien slapped on his face. “Is that a—”

“Yes.” Kai cut him off, keeping his eyes on Sehun’s.

Sehun slowly turned his head away as well when he realized the guy was looking directly at him. “He’s coming this way.” he mouthed to Kai.

“Fuck. Hey, Everett.” Kai spun around in his seat and flashed a toothy, cocky smile at the man.

“Brought a friend, eh, Kai?” the man’s hoarse voice curdled the blood in Sehun’s veins. Sehun curled a hand around Chanyeol’s arm to keep him in place. The stranger, who reeked of fresh blood intermingled with his strong Vampire scent now had his eyes on Chanyeol. “And a snack.”

“Bugger off, Everett.” Kai shot upright and placed himself between him and Chanyeol.

“Oh come on, Kai. You and I both know that you can’t lay a finger on me. That’s the rule, isn’t it? You can’t harm your own kind on this land. So why don’t you just hand him over and we’ll have a good evening.”

“Uhm, how about no?” he pressed a hand onto Everett’s chest, pushing him back a little.

“Ah dammit. Then we have to do this the hard way, don’t we?” he licked his lips, eyes landing on Sehun. “Well, how about him then?”

“Fuck off before I rip your throat out.”

“That’s too bad.” The man lurched forward and Chanyeol and Sehun jolted up. Before his hand even reached Chanyeol’s neck, the beer bottle shattered, slammed on his hand and Kai shoved him back, gripping the broken bottle’s in his hand. Everett gasped, staggering a few steps back before Sehun took Kai’s side. Every last one of the people in the pub was on their toes now, anticipating some sort of fight.

“Not him.” Kai snarled, gritting his teeth.

“Bad move, Kai!” the guy yapped before advancing towards Sehun. This time, Kai caught the guy’s neck and his fist was plunged into his skull. Booting him in the guts, Kai sent him diving to the ground.

“Not him either.”

Sehun stood there, gaping at Kai as Everett scurried to his feet. “Vance will hear about this!” he barked, retreating towards the door.

“Yeah. Something tells me he’s not gonna side with you on this matter.”

Even when Everett had left them, spitting on the floor, Sehun could not take his eyes off Kai. This was not the first time Kai had stood up for him.

_Curling his arms around Kai’s waist first, he snaked them along Kai’s shoulder blades before hooking his hands onto the shoulders as he leaned in and pressed his face into the front of Kai’s shoulder. The second he felt Kai’s arms swirl around his neck, the tears gushed out his eyes once again. He needed to thank Kai. He needed to tell Kai about how long he had been waiting for someone to protect him. And Kai had even risked his own life. Weeping into Kai’s shoulder, Sehun inhaled the scent of Kai’s skin again. Suddenly, the Werewolf scent was comforting and assuaging. He felt safe. He felt safer than when he was in his mother’s arms. He was indeed physical strong. But mentally, Sehun was too vulnerable. And tonight, Kai got to see the most vulnerable side of him._

“We should go.” Kai urged them, eyeing Sehun with a nonchalant gaze before ushering Chanyeol to move. When Sehun did not move, he pinned him with a long scowl. “He might come back with his group. We should go, Sehun.”

Unconsciously nodding, Sehun obliged. He did not need Kai’s protection. But somehow, he wanted it. He yearned for it. For someone to always look out for him.

 

 

 

“What happened? You look shaken.” Vance hurtled down the stairs in a frenzy as if he had been waiting for them to walk through that door.

“Shaken? I think he might have pissed himself.” Kai snorted, prodding a finger into Chanyeol’s back.

“Cut it out. What happened?” Vance hurried to Chanyeol’s side.

“I’m fine.” Chanyeol simply shrugged Vance’s touch off his shoulder and fixed him a scowl. “Is that how you people see us humans? As weak and puny?”

“What?” Vance blinked, seeming a little taken aback.

“Of course. You’re all almighty.” He sneered and shoved past a very appalled Vance who stood still for a moment, glowering at both Kai and Sehun. When he finally snapped out of it, he slowly turned and followed after Chanyeol.

“That was that. Never seen him that flustered before. Have you?” the minute Kai faced him, Sehun’s body stopped functioning. “Hey, you okay?” he asked, frowning.

Sehun started towards the stairs without uttering a word. Kai paused for a moment before he quietly began to tread on Sehun’s heels. They did not share a single conversation as Kai walked behind him in silence until they reached Sehun’s room. Kai stopped a few feet before Sehun. “Why don’t you come in?” Sehun breathed out, hand languidly twisting the doorknob.

Kai responded with a single nod.


	11. Ten

“Chanyeol.” Vance rasped, bolting after Chanyeol into the room.

“Jesus fucking Christ! Stop doing that!” he snapped and shoved past Vance to grab his backpack from the corner of the room. He tossed it onto the bed before unzipping it. Vance stood still for a while, staring at Chanyeol rummaging into the backpack before he pulled his passport out with his return ticket snuck between the pages.

“What are you doing?”

Chanyeol yanked a jacket out and peeled off the one he was wearing. Donning the new jacket, he looked up at Vance indifferently. “I’m getting the hell out of here.”

“Wait.” His mind was congested with disappointment as he marched over to Chanyeol and pressed a hand to Chanyeol’s chest to stop him.

“Let go.”

“Please.” The word seemed foreign on his tongue. Unfamiliar. Vance had no clue when was the last time he had genuinely begged someone for something entirely trivial. Trivial as it might be, it was important. Chanyeol was important. The man looked down at him with his breath quickening by the second and teeth grit. Vance lowered his hand from his chest and licked his lips. “Look. I’m not sure what has happened, but if you tell me, I can assure you that I will make things right.”

“Make things right?! How is your existence itself going to make anything right?! Those wolves! Kai, Jongin and all the other Werewolves are not murderers! You are! You… _Vampires_ are! Your legend is not all bullshit after all, is it? Werewolves protect everyone you Vampires prey on. And… what are humans to you, huh? Food. Isn’t that right? I tried to overlook it, but after what happened tonight, I can’t. Let me ask you this one thing. How many people have you killed?”

Vance’s stubbornness that had been shaped and moulded for some ten centuries did not make the frowning possible. He apathetically pinned Chanyeol down with a tedious look. Then he averted it to Chanyeol’s balled hand. “Do you expect me to keep count of the worthless lives I’ve taken over the span of a thousand years?” he brought his head up to meet Chanyeol’s shaken gaze with his merciless and inconsiderate stare. He slowly moved to the mantelshelf and dragged his fingers along the top of it. “Do you think I care of what you humans feel? You _are_ right.” He paused to glance over at Chanyeol who was gaping at him in either horror or appalment. “They’re weak, unimportant and… ne'er-do-well, so to speak. You do realize that humans are only a level above… pigs?” his smirk was deliberate, shockingly insincere, but it served its purpose and instantly sparked Chanyeol’s anger which was broadcasted by his scowl. “I’m not a bad guy, Chanyeol.” He kept his voice monotonous as he faced him straight. “But I most certainly am not the good guy either.”

“No. You’re just a cunt.” He hauled the backpack off the bed. “You can’t keep count ‘cause you’ve killed that many. This weak and ne'er-do-well humans that you speak of… you were once one of them, weren’t you? Or were you born a bloodsucker?”

“I was.” Vance answered calmly, taking a step closer to him. “A human. Weak, helpless, a slave. I was, in fact, twelve years old when I was forced to the most unthinkable things that you could not surmise. Feudal lords and ladies, grand dukes and duchesses, travelling merchants, all.”

Chanyeol’s hard expression softened. Just a little. “A… slave?”

Vance let out a laugh and a scoff. “I was not exactly a hierodule, serving in a temple actually. It was the…” he searched for the right word. “Lowest.” He decided. “Of all slavery.” Another step closer. He could hear Chanyeol’s racing heartbeat now. “No one would conjecture the Hell I went through. But you know, Chanyeol, all of us have a Hell of our own. Mine was serving lords and ladies in bed.”

“A… sex… slave?” Chanyeol’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he gulped, eyes widened a little.

“What?” Vance snorted. “I suddenly don’t seem all almighty?”

There was no response for a moment as Chanyeol stared at him with vacancy in his gaze. “You were… young.”

“My parents sold me off for a bag of grain. I surely do not regret them doing that or all the pain I was put through because I am here now, standing before you as one of the most powerful creatures walking the planet.”

“Still.” That instant, when Vance saw the frown etched on Chanyeol’s eyebrows, his stomach was tangled with ecstatic trepidation as his heart swelled. “No one should have to go through that.”

Vance was tongue-tied for a moment. His mind was a blank slate, unable to generate a verbal response.

“However, having a bad past doesn’t justify anything that you’ve done.” Chanyeol continued. “You think those people you served were cruel. How are you any different? You are Hell to many of us, aren’t you? Those humans you killed were probably just as helpless as you were when you were forced to go to bed with those ancient jerks, right?”

“I’m not sure you understand—”

“Make me understand, then!” Chanyeol advanced a step and Vance found himself retreating one. It almost surprised him that he was afraid of disappointing a human. “You know what, this is futile. I really don’t fucking care what you do. I just want to get back to my very mundane, normal life without all you crazies.” He spun around to grab his backpack but was forced to a standstill when Vance caught his arm.

“I…” he started in the lowest voice possible. His expression remained undefined. He was not giving anything away through his expression, he was certain. But for once, he wished he was not so hard-hearted. It would have been nice to have at least one person see that soft, _beating_ heart he once had. “I have never told this to anyone.” He murmured and Chanyeol gave him a look of bafflement.

“Told what?”

“About my past.”

His eyes bulged out. “Anyone? Like… never?”

Vance was too unnerved to shake his head. But his parted quivering lips attracted Chanyeol’s attention. “Nor has anyone especially a human spoken that way to me.”

“Oh.”

He felt Chanyeol’s bicep flex under his hand. He dragged his eyes back up to lock them with Chanyeol’s. “Don’t leave.”

His answer was lifeless. “I can’t stay.”

“Let me make you stay, then.” The words tumbled off Vance’s lips in a blurry haste before his hand snaked around Chanyeol’s neck. His fingers immediately entangled themselves around his hair at the back and Chanyeol was not given a moment to protest when Vance brought their bodies together. A slam, a grip, a thrust and a shove. Soft against hard, pain against pleasure, objection against lust, dry against wet, harmony against chaos. Vance pulled the only innocent puppet in his show into the realms of darkness.

 

* * *

 

A weak, fragile silence hovered between them, eager to be broken and eager to be filled with hurtful confessions. The struggle of losing the memories of a man his heart so obviously bled for and the torture of having lived a lie for the last two years of his life floundered on Sehun’s lips, grappling them, longing to let go. He did not want to put up a fight against his feelings any longer. There was not much to be done anymore.

Sehun undid the buttons of his shirt, facing the closed doors of the balcony as his ears twitched to the click of the door’s lock. The moon poured its silvery light into the dark room, glistening the floor with its radiance. He hung his head for a very short moment and rubbed his fingertips along the lines of his crumpled forehead as his unbuttoned shirt dangle on his shoulders, exposing the sternum of his toned chest, all the way down to the almost invisible trail of hair below his navel. He could hear Kai’s blood pounding in his veins behind him.

None of them wanted to break this tenuous silence that was holding their sanity together. How much would the memories he had lost value if Kai was reluctant to restructure everything that they once had? Why would regaining his memories matter if nothing was to be done after that? Kai was right. It did not matter whether Sehun got his memories back or not. What they had was lost forever and Kai was did not seem to be wanting it back. So why should Sehun? Why should he keep clinging onto a hope that was not even there anymore? He had a life now. With Jongin. Whatever he had with Kai, it was over. It was powerful, but it was no more. The truth was, Sehun was far too tired chasing something that was out of his reach.

“I’ve decided.” The silence shattered. Along with Sehun’s heart. He did not turn around to meet Kai’s eyes. He could not. His eyes were nothing like Jongin’s although they were identical in many sense. Sehun knew Kai’s eyes. He knew Jongin’s eyes. He could tell them apart in a heartbeat. But there was same sheen in both their eyes. The longing.

“What have you decided?” Kai’s voice was hoarse and low.

“I’m tired of this façade. We should never meet again.”

Silence rebuilt itself between them and was again broken by Kai. “Is that what you want?”

“That is what you want, right?”

A short pause. “Yes.”

“Okay. I will leave first thing tomorrow morning. Good luck on… defeating Vance’s sire bond.”

“You sound like I won’t succeed.”

“I actually far too exhausted to care, Kai. I’m… done. I came here to find answers. I did. And they weren’t the answers I was looking for.”

“What are they?”

“The life I’ve been living has always been a lie, constructed by others.” He scoffed. “Before I went to Jackson, I was… a walking corpse. But now, as you’ve put it, I’m a puppet. You know what, I’m just going to walk away from everything. Vance, this… ridiculous monarchy that Vance had built for himself and… you.” he finally gathered the courage to turn around and before he could grasp it, Kai had jolted closer and was holding his face in his hands. Sehun’s eyes opened as wide as they could, looking directly into Kai’s miserable ones. His hands were lukewarm against Sehun’s cheeks, his chest almost pressed against Sehun’s.

“Why?” he hissed and tightened his jaw. Sehun’s hands fidgeted, wanting to rise to Kai’s face. “Why the fuck do you do this?”

“Wh-what?”

“Even if I want you to be happy, to be out of my life, to make things easier for you, I can never seem to let you go. Do you know how much it hurts me? You can move on, Sehun. You _can_. I can’t. You are able to love another. Be with another. I can’t. Not as long as you and I live.”

He was unable to move any part of his body. His mind short-circuited. Kai was _holding_ him, saying things that Sehun was not able to swallow. There were sparks in his brain, desperately trying to connect the dots. Kai held Sehun’s astonished gaze. “Kai… maybe…” he finally brought himself to speak again, but only in whispers. “I… didn’t choose Jongin. You… can’t know that for sure. You said that I chose him because I forgot about you. Maybe I… loved you both. Please. Let me at least regain my memories. Vance would listen if you—”

“Then what? So what if you love us both, Sehun? Can’t you see? I can’t share your love. And my current situation doesn’t allow me the pleasure of fighting for you over my own brother.”

“Okay, then. Stop preventing me from leaving. You want me gone, but you can’t let me go.”

Kai dropped his hands from Sehun’s face and flumped on the edge of the bed, letting out a long sigh. “I love you.” he muttered. “That’s the only thing I’m sure of right now.”

“Then just come with me.”

“And?”

“Kai, we’ll figure something out.”

“No. I’ve made up my mind. This is my life now.”

“Why?! Why do you think you have to punish yourself?!”

“Because I brought this all on myself, Sehun! I had you. I fucking had you, I had everything. And then I went and ruined it all.”

Sehun could not bring himself to afford comfort to Kai when he, himself needed some sort of consolation.

_I want you._

“Why did you mate with me?” he asked, walking over and stopping before him. Kai looked up at him with a sorrowful frown. “If you had no assurance that I loved just you, then why?”

“I…”

“I don’t know if I love you more than Jongin, Kai, but I think I loved you enough. I think I loved you enough to go through that _pain_ for you. Because…” he brought a knee up to the bed beside Kai’s thigh and earned a sceptical but astounded look from Kai. Curling a hand around the back of Kai’s head, Sehun gripped his hair and climbed onto the bed, placing another knee on the other side of Kai. He felt Kai’s sigh of desperation on the skin of his abs as Kai latched his hands on the sides of Sehun’s waist.

“Because?” his whisper ghosted along Sehun’s sternum as he pulled his head up to look into Sehun’s eyes. He was almost shivering against Sehun.

“I could never… bring myself to go through knotting with Jongin. I would if he asks. But… I can never initiate it myself.”

Kai’s hands travelled south, along Sehun’s hips before they cupped the back of Sehun’s thighs. “And if _I_ ask you now?”

Sehun knew he was losing it all as his hand fisted Kai’s hair, pulling it down. He bowed his head, lips parted. Kai’s hand languidly moved between his legs, grazing his crotch. “Make me remember.” He whispered against Kai’s plush lips. “Everything.”


	12. Eleven

His entire body softened at Kai’s touch. Any softer, he’d have melted between Kai’s fingers like thawing winter. His mind was attentive with all of his Vampire instinct at its pinnacle point. However, his body caved, giving into the hard man’s unexpected tenderness. His knuckles brushed Kai’s hair as he curled his fingers into it, cupping the shape of the back of Kai’s head. He felt Kai’s desperation in the thrum of his blood in his neck. A reckless longing sheened Kai’s eyes, lustred with an animal hunger and a lover’s lust. His hands came to Sehun’s waist under the sagging undone shirt. There was need and there was want. But there was also guilt and resistance. Sehun arched down as Kai looked up, eyes half-lidded. Palming a side of Kai’s face, Sehun gently felt the frame of his powerful jaw—like a wolf’s. The slightest hint of stubble, that was only visible this close, lined his jaw and Sehun was already fighting the urge to trace it with his lips. The brilliance of their sexual thirst laid bared between them, apparent as ever. Their eager, yet trembling lips pronounced their want for one another rather plainly. Even so, the empty inch between their lips remained, hesitant to remove itself. For a moment as his hands tightened around Kai’s hair and cupped a corner of his jaw respectively, he thought that Kai would pull away. But he did not. Their lips met on Kai’s own accord. It burned. Blistered. Set all of Sehun ablaze. His mind—which was attentive—shattered with the lightest brush of their lips. He found himself revelling into an endless alley of delirium and famishment for feral and untamed sex. But amidst all the fire Kai had lit deep within him with just a press of his lips against Sehun’s, there was a calmness that proclaimed all peace and satisfaction. Sehun felt as if he were in the arms of the man who shared his destiny, the man who will protect him, love him and destroy him so beautifully all the same.

_When he first met Kai, Sehun already knew that he was about to lose entire world. Although at the time, he thought that Kai would try to destroy his world. How can you hang on to something so incomprehensible? How can you keep pouring love into an abyss? An abyss. That was what Kai was. This town was not his home. This house was not his home. Kai was. Being in his arms, having him inflict a sort of beautiful pain was home. Sehun fell for Kai and he fell for Sehun just as hard._

He gasped against Kai’s ripen lips as another fragment of his lost memories rushed back to him. Kai was and had always been his home. No matter where Sehun wandered to, he will always find his way back home. Sehun had never been one to believe in fates and destinies. But what cruelty was it that fate took a toll on them both when they shared the same providence? After all that’d happened, here Sehun was—safely returned to Kai’s arms. A huge part of his memories of Kai remained lost, but right now, this speck of assurance that Kai belonged to and with him was enough. This _abyss_ was enough.

“Kai.” His distress showed through his raspy whisper upon Kai’s lower lip before he kissed it. Kai took his own sweet time tasting Sehun’s lips, one by one although his hands spoke against his patient kissing. They clawed into the skin of Sehun’s waist on both sides as if to hold onto something to keep his control. Sehun wished otherwise. He wanted Kai to lose control. He willed for Kai to rip him apart instead of treating him as a newly birthed fawn. But the tenderness he possessed was unforeseen. Sehun never knew a man like Kai would have the prevailing tendency of a gentle lover, rather than of a warrior’s. How much of this gentleness had Kai shown him when they had been together, Sehun wondered. Was he young and not as experienced and adroit—battle-scarred even in the sense of losing his love, his mate to another man he called brother—back then when they were together? Was he mischievous, hearty, energetic, effusive and lively then for that he seemed worn out and to have given up now? All these questions swarmed Sehun’s mind. He wanted to know what sort of man Kai was before he was heartbroken and had taken up the responsibility of a vindictive hybrid, aiming to destroy the one man who actually did him better than Sehun himself. Vance had not been the one who chose Jongin and broke Kai’s heart. Vance had not been the one who still could not make a choice and was scared of making a choice. If anything, Sehun knew he loved Jongin. Whether he loved Kai or not was up for debate because there was absolutely nothing except the assurance of their sexual urges could conform to it. He wanted the memories back. He wanted to know what Vance had ripped away from him and what Kai was afraid of letting on.

If this was the only way, then so be it. Little encounters triggered memories within him. Maybe going through the most pivotal moment he had apparently had with Kai was bound to retrieve a significant proportion of his memories. If Vance or Kai won’t give them back, then Sehun had to do his bidding himself. Even if it meant he will have to go through a hell of a pain. Jongin had warned him aplenty about knotting, but never asked Sehun for the pleasure, not that Sehun would have denied him that. It was his right to ask so. But Jongin never had in the past two years. Thinking about it now, Sehun wondered if Jongin ever had the intention of knotting with him. Or if he had even been confident that Sehun was his mate to be sure of any knotting between them.

It boiled up something sour in Sehun’s throat. If Kai had already mated with him, he surely must not have taken such a long time to consider knotting with Sehun. He must have been certain that Sehun was his mate. He must have been certain that Sehun loved him enough to go him through that pain. What was Sehun aiming for now? Just retrieving his memories or raking in the proof for Kai’s claim of him being his mate?

He felt Kai’s subtly warm palm splay across his chest as their lips parted, but still ghosted over one another. Kai was not as warm as Jongin. He was stronger, harder and much more driven tonight. He slowly snaked his other hand around Sehun’s lean neck before his lips were pressed along Sehun’s jawline. Sehun lowered to sit on his lap with his crotch grazing Kai’s as his neck was peppered with Kai’s soft kisses. He brought his hands to Kai’s shirt but his fingers fumbled to unfasten the buttons. Frustration angered him. They were still in all of their clothes and Sehun would kill to feel all of Kai’s heat against his own cold body right now. He was not sure why Kai was handling him like a fragile doll since there was not much that he could break, but Sehun did not oppose the kindness. Maybe Kai was still unable to believe that he was actually holding Sehun in his arms and would be able to take all of Sehun for himself within seconds.

Sehun knew where he wanted to be on the bed with Kai—under him or on top, riding him. It had been some while since he had surrendered to the grip of a man, but he was in no shape to fight against Kai for the right of rutting the man. He wanted Kai to do it, whether he knotted or not.

As Kai’s lips travelled down his collarbones and sternum, Sehun knelt up slowly with a hand clenching Kai’s hair. Just when Kai’s lips and the tip of his tongue touched his abs, Sehun threw his head back a little, letting out a breezy moan. Kai’s hands cupped his ass and squeezed them as he tongued the slim navel of Sehun’s abdomen. He lost the remaining silvers of mindfulness when Kai’s lips reached the trail of hair leading down to his cock past the waistband of his pants. He yanked Kai’s hair and pulled him up for a deep kiss. Their tongues, this time, ferociously danced around each other, abusing their way for dominance. That instant, all tenderness was lost, forsaken and abandoned. They were overtaken by the fierce need for more skin contact, for more exploration of the limits of their lips. Suddenly, Sehun felt Kai’s urge to drag his lips to parts of Sehun’s body that should not be ventured. He let out a growl into Sehun’s mouth and with a brutal strength grabbed the back of Sehun’s head to deepen the already passionate kiss.

Sehun almost gasped when Kai picked him up and deliriously tossed him onto the bed. That moment he looked as if his patience had worn off. Still positioned between Sehun’s legs, Kai yanked his shirt off in a frenzy as Sehun pulled his own clothes off his body. He did not spare a moment to look at Kai’s shirtless, tan, toned body since he will have plenty to look at for the entire evening and kicked his shoes and socks off. He hesitated for a second with his hands hauling his pants down along with his boxers. Surely Kai had seen him naked, but Sehun had no remembrance of baring himself before a man he had technically met a day earlier. Even so, it was not uncomfortable to strip himself down to nothing but his own skin with Kai watching him like a ravenous hawk. He returned to the middle of the bed with his blood rushing the nape. Kai knelt there on the mattress, staring at Sehun’s milky pale body with his eyebrows furrowed into a scowl. Swallowing, Sehun wondered what was running on his mind. Was he having second thoughts? Was he showering with guilt of sleeping with his brother’s lover for the supposedly second time? Whatever it was, Sehun did not want him to stop now.

He got on his knees and hooked his fingers over the belt as his other hand curled around Kai’s neck. He pressed his lips onto Kai’s, drawing him back to the ecstasy they both yearned. Kai’s strong arms came around his unclothed body as Sehun struggled to gently undo the belt. Giving up on his own patience, he crushed Kai’s belt’s buckle before ripping the leather strip off the belt loops of his pants. “Fuck, get out of these pants!” Sehun hissed out of frustration when his hand followed the outline of Kai’s hardening cock, palming the bulge over the fabric of his pants. Kai did not obey at once as his hand slid down the cleft of Sehun’s back while their lips busied themselves on each other’s necks. Sehun almost nipped at the soft skin of Kai’s collarbone when he felt Kai’s finger gliding over his tailbone. Then he pulled back and shoved Sehun to lie down on the bed. He still wore the same sceptical look like he was still considering to withdraw from all of this. He probably knew what Sehun wanted out of this. He also probably knew that his self-control and self-resistance did not aid him much when Sehun was the one who was pushing him now.

Kai pulled himself off the bed and stepped out of his pants and shoes before pulling the bedside drawer open. He pulled a small jar of perfumed oil and Sehun bit his lip, pondering how many men had Kai taken in during his stay here. If anything, Sehun should be the last person to judge the number of people Kai bedded when he himself had been fucking Kai’s brother and was now nothing but ready to sleep with Kai. While Kai paused to absent-mindedly stare at the jar, Sehun studied the beautiful frame Kai took. He probably was not as delicately sculptured in his wolf form, but like this, completely bared and vulnerable in some sense, he was beautiful. A diamond in the rough. He was tanned perfectly with the same skin tone from top to toe. His biceps and abs complimented his lithe physique, but he did not look as breakable as Jongin. Although Jongin was a Werewolf, a First Alpha at that, he was docile on many terms and he embraced the fact. He was not a rowdy like Kai. He was not anywhere near as rough as Kai. Sehun dragged his eyes lower, taking in the arching pink flesh. He licked his lips, wanting to both taste that flesh in his mouth and feel the extent of its hardness and warmth inside him. “Kai?” he called in the lowest voice possible when Kai seemed reluctant to return to the bed.

He clenched the edge of the bedside table and leaned over it after probing the jar of scented oil, sighing heavily. He was forcing himself to not to meet Sehun’s equally longing gaze. Sehun wondered if Kai loved him enough to coax him with gentleness, make him comfortable with his weight, prepare him for the pain. Sehun extended a hand and touched Kai’s arm. He flinched but did not pull away. “What’s the matter?” Sehun asked, hiding his restiveness and agitation.

“I…” Kai started and met Sehun’s eyes. “You’re about to sleep with a stranger, Sehun.” he sounded miserable.

Sehun blinked, unsure of what he should reply. Kai was right. He was about to let a stranger fuck him in a way. But they both knew that they were not strangers in reality. At least this animal attraction between them said otherwise. “I’m not.” Sehun said after some consideration. “You’re not a stranger, Kai. I think that fact is well established. I might not remember who you are, but my body does. My… heart does. You’re no stranger to them.” He knelt up and pulled Kai closer by the neck. Kai did not protest when Sehun pulled him onto the bed and lied next to him. “After tonight, I will decide whether I want to leave you or not. So please. Please for now… be with me. Hold me.”

This time, Kai kissed him with languidness, but with all the same passion. He had an arm curled around Sehun’s neck while his hand held the side of Sehun’s face. Sehun felt his blood stirring in his nether regions when Kai slipped his leg between his thighs. They laid there in a tangle of limbs, chest against chest, as Sehun latched his hand on the side of Kai’s hard torso, grinding himself against Kai’s leg. He was right. His body and lips knew Kai all too well. They easily melted against him, almost too comfortably as if they were accustomed to being handled my Kai’s strength. On the other hand, he understood Kai’s frustration. No matter what, Sehun was indeed about to sleep with a guy he had only heard prior to two days ago. It would all be much easier if Kai just allowed Vance to return Sehun’s memories, but at what cost? Sehun would need to choose one and right now, he was not sure if he would choose Kai and not return to Jongin. What was he doing here in bed with Kai, then? It was all just a gamble. He might end up sleeping with Kai only to have his memories triggered and returning back to Jongin, or he could not retrieve his memories even if he actually went through this sex of convenience with Kai. Or in Kai’s favour, he may choose to stay with Kai, but then Sehun was sure that Kai would take it as a sympathy. The ascertained outcome of this would definitely be Kai’s heartbreak all over again.

He broke the kiss and looked at Kai in a daze. “You know that I will go back to Jongin no matter what happens between us tonight.” He muttered, feeling his erection pressed against Kai’s own.

“I do.” Kai admitted.

“Then… _why_?”

“I’m…” he gulped. “I have and will always be a selfish bastard.” He mumbled, lowering his gaze to Sehun’s lips. “You already made your choice, Sehun. You chose Jongin and I stepped aside. But now, you’re in my arms. I just want to indulge myself so fucking selfishly for one last before letting you go entirely.”

“Please let me have my memories back, Kai. You might be convinced, but I’m cannot be sure that I made the right choice.”

“Jongin _is_ the right choice. You’ve seen who I am now, Sehun. Regaining your memories of the old me won’t do you any good. I’m a lost cause. A ruined boy who can no longer undo all the gory things I’ve done in the past couple of years.”

“So… this is just a one-night stand, then? Because you think this won’t change a thing for either of us?”

“I’m afraid so.” Kai exhaled, swiping his thumb along Sehun’s bottom lip. “It won’t change a thing for you at least. By morning, even if you remembered the night we spent together, it won’t change how you feel about Jongin. The first time didn’t, did it?”

“What?”

“I was the one who lost that night I mated with you. I thought I had won over Jongin. I hadn’t. Instead, you proved that you loved the idea of me, not me. Vance said that Jongin is your true love and I’m just a distraction you took pleasure in. And as soon as you forgot about me, you were back in Jongin’s arms in no time.”

Sehun had no arguments against that. He loved Jongin. He loved Jongin and no one could tell him otherwise. But the question here was that if he loved Kai. However, he knew that Kai would not even entertain the idea of sharing a love with his brother. “If you think I’m going to sell myself off for one night because I love the idea of you, you’re wrong.” He muttered under his breath before sitting up. He pulled the duvet over his lower body and buried his face in his palms. “You seriously think it won’t change a thing for me? Do you think I’m that heartless just because I chose to cheat on Jongin by sleeping with his brother?”

“Persuade me otherwise.” Kai challenged, propping himself up on his elbow. Sehun tossed him a glare and then realized Kai was simply provoking him. “You’ve done it before.”

“What exactly did I do, Kai?!” he snapped. “Because I am… completely confused of what I’ve done so wrong that you’re doing this to me.”

“What do you me—”

“I’m here, looking for you and my heart aches for you. You want me gone and yet you can’t seem to let me go. You bring me all the way to bed just to guilt-trip me by saying that I’m cheating on my boyfriend. Yes, that might be true but you do see that neither of us can stop ourselves. You say that you’re certain that I’m in love with Jongin, but you keep saying that you love me. How am I supposed to move on and leave when you keep holding me back?!”

“Fine. I don’t want to let you go. I want you to stay. I want you to just forget about Jongin and stay with me. Will you?” His confession was blatantly abrupt.

“Kai, I… love Jongin. I’m just saying that neither of us would ever know for sure if I want to push you away or not.”

“Okay.” He surrendered. “But you should know that you’re in love with a guy who will never, _ever_ love you the way he loves another man.”

“What are you blabbering about?”

“You aren’t the only one with a cheating heart here.” He spat through his grit teeth and got off the bed.

“Are you talking about Jongin?”

Kai did not answer as he began to pick up the pants from the floor. Sehun furiously grabbed Kai’s hand. “Stop.” He snarled. “Kai, what do you want from me?!”

That was the last straw. Kai bolted back onto the bed and gripped Sehun’s wrists before slamming him back, pinning his hands on the mattress on either sides of Sehun’s head. “You have no fucking idea how much it hurts me to touch you where Jongin had.”

Sehun, wide-eyed, gaped at how murderous Kai looked with his eyes glistening. “That isn’t my fault.” He let out, carefully. “You’re jealous. That isn’t my fault. You left. Jongin stayed. That isn’t _my_ fault either. You refuse to give me my memories of you back. That definitely isn’t my fault. You jump into your own conclusions, claiming that I most definitely love Jongin and not you. You don’t give me an option to even know who you are. You’re holding me back because you know I’m right, because you’re unsure of it yourself! None of these is my fault!”

He half expected Kai to punch him or at least slap him in the face. But instead, Kai smashed their lips together before pulling Sehun’s thighs up in an angry madness. He pressed his hard cock against Sehun’s own painful length. With one stretch of his arm, Kai grabbed the jar of oil and carelessly unlidded it. Most of the oil spilled and seeped into the mattress and the rest greased Kai’s hand. His mouth covered Sehun’s and swallowed every moan that Sehun emitted upon the insertion of Kai’s oiled fingers. He raised his legs and locked them around Kai’s waist as Kai hastily fingered him. His harsh but slender fingers curled and massaged the soft insides of Sehun, stretching his opening without any mercy. And just like that, Sehun tumbled into utter rapture of Kai’s cock thrusting into him, swelling and locking inside him while their mouths stayed connected all night long.

 

* * *

 

Vance’s ears twitched and perked as a smirk followed on his lips. He could hear Sehun’s muffled screams from even this level of the manor. For the fourth time the night. And the night had gotten very old by now. “Looks like I’m not the only one who’s thoroughly enjoying the night.” He scoffed to himself, exiting the bathroom with his silver silk robe hanging unfastened, exposing every bit of his front, used, and ruined body which now looked good as new. His crème skin was bruised and reddened a while ago, though. All thanks to Chanyeol’s surprisingly harsh grips and ferocious kisses.

He checked his cuticles as he wove his way back to the bed. There was no doubt Kai and Sehun both harboured more strength to keep rutting each other through the night. But Vance’s little human was worn out after satisfying him for the first two hours. It had been some while since Vance had had the pleasure of returning the sexual ecstasy to his bed partners. Tonight, he was more than happy to have returned to favour of presenting Chanyeol with the skills he had learnt over the years of bedding men. Vance had never been picky. He went for both men and women. But tonight, he had been eager to have a man penetrate him until he bled and Chanyeol—for a human, that was—had been far more satisfactory than Vance would have imagined. He did not bother to take a shower during the time he used in the bathroom to check himself for beautiful love marks that Chanyeol had left on his lean body before they healed while the human dozed, rather tiredly. It was no easy task to please a Vampire, Chanyeol probably had learnt that lesson now. Still smelling like sex and semen, Vance returned to the bed with a smile etched on his face. Chanyeol slept, on his stomach with a side of his face pressed into the pillow, his long arms sprawled across the bed and the covers sloppily draped over his back. Vance licked his smirking lips when he heard another tired cry from upstairs. Kai sure was fucking him good. Vance considered turning his heightened hearing sense off to give them some privacy but decided against it. He wanted to hear them moan and scream. His own phallus reacted to both the noise and the sight of a very vulnerable Chanyeol before him. His soft snores enlightened and amused Vance. The man was tired to his bones. Good.

He mounted Chanyeol, but did not sit. Instead, he knelt and leaned forward as his silk robe sagged to his shoulders. There were not many things that Vance had the pleasure of remembering, but the way Chanyeol’s strong, large dick screwed him until he surrendered to a mere human was definitely one of them. He kissed Chanyeol’s shoulder blade before his tongue jutted out to lick along it. Chanyeol stirred and grunted and with half-opened eyes, he turned and lied on his back while Vance still hovered above his hips. Grinning, Vance lowered to sit on Chanyeol’s unconscious erection and pressed his palms onto Chanyeol’s abs. “What… are you doing?” Chanyeol mumbled in a hoarse, sleepy voice.

“You can sleep if you want. But I can see that your body wants otherwise.” He purred and bowed, almost pressing his own chest upon Chanyeol’s. Chanyeol lazily kissed him back and still kept his eyes half-lidded when Vance withdrew from the kiss. Straightening up, Vance lightly latched his hands on Chanyeol’s ribs and rocked his hips forward, grinding his ass on Chanyeol’s cock that rested, arched back on his stomach.

“Fuck.” Chanyeol murmured half asleep and closed his eyes, drawing in a deep breath.

 


	13. Twelve

Riding his thick hard cock was a crime against his waistline and the steadiness of his hips. Chanyeol’s musky scent blended with the mouth-watering scent of his sweat that beaded his entire body drove Vance straight into insanity. He was filled, pierced and stretched by Chanyeol’s eager erection that was almost brushing his tailbone. Vance felt his own sweat trickling down the nape, drenching his fair hair. His shoulders and chest drooled sweat down to his abdomen and cock. His robe was sinking by his arms, its sleeves gathered at the elbows. The sinful pain that he took so much pleasure in ripped him under, thrusting Vance into a chasm of lust and sex. He throbbed around Chanyeol’s cock that was buried so deep inside him as he rocked his hips faster, riding him into his cathartic moment. Chanyeol finally snapped out of his daze and sleepiness and gripped Vance’s waist on both sides with the harshest strength a human could muster. “Ahh…” Vance let himself betray a moan as he threw his head back with Chanyeol’s strong hands latched on the corners of his waist. Surely that was to leave a bruise even for a short moment. Vance could not explain why Chanyeol bruising his body with his lips and grips did not only excite him but drove him mad. He just wanted his little human to pay all of his attention to him tonight.

Another groan escaped Chanyeol’s mouth as he watched Vance ride him with pure lust sheening his eyes. He slipped his hands under the messy robe of Vance’s and stroked his tender white thighs before his hands moved to grip Vance’s ass. Their eyes were locked just as they were. Chanyeol’s lips were parted while he panted with a heaving chest. His hair was wild, screaming sex and all of his lustful gaze was for Vance alone tonight. “Fuck this.” Chanyeol grabbed hold of Vance’s hips and with one swift motion, he flopped Vance to lie on the bed and peppered Vance’s neck with ravenous kisses before dragging his lips down Vance’s sweat covered body. He slid his pulsating cock back in and fucked him with atrocious roughness. Smiling at the electricity of a pain Chanyeol’s erection gave him, Vance threw his arms around Chanyeol’s neck and wrapped his legs around the other man’s waist to allow him more access. “Ugh.” Chanyeol snarled into his mouth when Vance grazed his teeth along his lower lip before biting it gently, suckling it until it throbbed against Vance’s tongue. His thrusts were strong and he mercilessly slammed in and out of Vance.

“Come inside me.” Vance whispered, gliding his slim fingers into Chanyeol’s damp hair and let Chanyeol kiss him full on mouth as he picked up the pace of his thrusts. Although Vance himself was close to reaching his climax, he wished for Chanyeol to attain his first. He doubted Chanyeol would care much about Vance’s own pleasure, but he did hope that Chanyeol would.

Chanyeol swallowed Vance’s gasp when he burst, filling Vance with his hot come. His kiss was suddenly all but sloppy and repulsive. Vance grinned against Chanyeol’s lips as the man groaned wildly, revelling in his elation. He collapsed right onto Vance, sobbing for air. Then he straightened up, pulled out of Vance before making his way south. Vance blinked in disbelief, unable to accept the fact that Chanyeol took his cock into his mouth. The man did care about his partner’s pleasure. That plastered a smile on Vance’s abused lips. He spread his knees and fisted a handful of Chanyeol’s hair and did not take his eyes off him as well as Chanyeol’s beautiful lips that were wrapped around his pink erection. This was more than Vance could have asked for. The first time, he came while Chanyeol was still fucking him. But this time, he had the pleasure of coming in that pretty mouth.

His back arched off the bed as white ropes of semen shot all over Chanyeol’s lips and jaw. He was not sure what he was expecting, but Chanyeol let out a sigh of relief and smiled at him before he crawled back up to kiss him with that _delicious_ dirty mouth. For once, Vance loved the man he brought to bed. For once, he was not letting an asshole fuck him.

 

* * *

 

The familiar soreness in his hips warned Sehun, but clenched his heart all the same. This game of desire was intoxicating. No memories returned that night. But new, unforgivable, sinning memories were forged. Sehun was not sure why even a silver of the memories were triggered, but he could take a guess. He was far too caught up with what Kai was doing to him at the moment to focus on anything else. Either way, his plan backfired. With no memories regained and with new painful memories to forget, Sehun laid on the bed as the dawning morning’s sunrays danced on his bare back. He had not rested. Only some twenty minutes ago, Kai was still knotted inside him. For the second time the night. Sehun closed his eyes, burrowing his cheek into the softness of the pillow. The oil splotch on the corner of the mattress remained as wasted as he was. He did not know why he didn’t protest or ask Kai to stop when they began the second time. And neither could Sehun stop himself from screaming in both pain and pleasure. He did not know how it must have felt the first time Kai swelled inside him. But last night, Sehun was put through hell and heaven at the same instant. No words were exchanged except for some obscenities when Kai locked and came. Sehun laid there still, worried that if he moved, he might spill.

He clenched his eyes tighter at the sudden consciousness of Kai’s come still full inside him. What had been Kai’s thoughts when they mated? If anything, it would have hurt Kai more than Sehun in many sense. Sehun at least was aware of how much knotting meant to Werewolves, but Kai was not just a Werewolf anymore, was he?

The bathroom’s door slid open and Kai stepped out, buttoning his shirt—or what was left of it. His hair was damp, but Sehun doubted he had showered since the thick scent of sex still hung on him from top to toe. He spared Sehun a sidelong glance before picking up the belt from the floor.

“So, is that it?” Sehun croaked with a sob choking his throat. He could not bring himself to sit up. He was healing, but not fast enough on the inside. Kai had almost ripped him.

Kai arched a brow. “Did you regain any memories?” his sceptical tone sounded dull. When Sehun did not respond, he scoffed. “Didn’t think so.”

“What now?”

“You go home, Sehun.” Kai sighed as if he were tired.

“That really is it, then? You’re letting go of your mate just after the night you knotted with him?”

“That happens to be the story of my life.” he shrugged. “Don’t bother to say goodbye. Last night was goodbye enough.”

“If that’s what you want.” Sehun gave up. He no longer fostered the strength to go on with this façade. Kai stopped by the door for a moment with his head hung.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“For everything. Your life would have been much less convoluted if I hadn’t walked into your life.”

Sehun had nothing to say to that. As soon as Kai walked out the door, it was time for Sehun to return to Jackson. To Jongin. He tried. He had given everything that he could to make things right. But obviously, the only wrong that had been done was to Kai. And if Kai himself did not want it rectified, then there was not much that Sehun could do.

He got off the bed, slow and steady. His body aches were long gone, but insides… Grinding his teeth, Sehun limped his way to the bathroom and pulled on a robe.

“Sire?”

Letting out a sigh, he turned and faced the butler who had entered with a silver tray holding a whiskey glass of blood. “Settle it there, please.”

Gordon nodded and placed the tray on the desk. “Shall I make the bed, my prince?”

Sehun loured at the bed that was stained with oil, sweat and semen. “Sure. And… Gordon, will you ask my friend to get ready? We ought to leave for the airport before noon.”

“Will do, sir. Anything else?”

“No.” he paused. “Do you know anything of a boy called Lenz?” he continued.

The butler hesitated to answer for a moment and then bowed his head. “He’s a child Count Vance keeps and looks after.”

“Is he being well cared for?”

“Yes, sire.”

“His father… Do you know where he’s gone to?”

“He…” he swallowed. “He hadn’t told me, prince. But I suppose he has gone to Jackson again.”

Sehun bit his tongue. “Okay. Thank you, Gordon. See to it that my friend is ready.”

 

* * *

 

 _He has a sweet tooth_. Vance smiled at his own thought, slumped against the headboard as Chanyeol wolfed the caramel rolls with his back leaned against Vance’s chest and Vance’s arms curled around him from behind.

“God, I’ve been so hungry.” Chanyeol growled as he grabbed another roll from the tray.

“You should have eaten last night.”

“I would have if I weren’t eating your ass.” He snorted and Vance, uncontrollably, flushed at that. His hands almost trembled upon Chanyeol’s chest. Smirking, Vance nuzzled his nose into Chanyeol’s hair.

“Are you complaining, though?”

Chanyeol did not reply at once but Vance noticed his lips stretching into a smug smile. “Are you… okay?”

“Huh? How do you mean?”

“You…” he trailed off as the caramel roll stayed idle in his hand. Vance blinked blankly before Chanyeol shifted and turned his head around to meet Vance’s gaze. He slid his free hand underneath Vance’s robe and stroked the curve of Vance’s waist.

Vance instantly knew what he meant. He almost laughed, but stifled it back. “Are you worried that your great dick cut my ass into two?”

Chanyeol’s cheeks coloured immediately. “Yeah, I forgot you’re a Vampire. You must heal pretty fast.”

Smiling softly, Vance ran his fingers through Chanyeol’s hair and cupped a side of his face. “I wish I hadn’t.” he breathed sotto voce. “No one has ever asked me that.”

“What?”

“Men I bedded always did it for convenience. And before I was a Vampire, I was the one to serve others, not the other way around. Therefore, no one really cared about how I felt after.”

“That’s some… ugh.” Chanyeol sat up straight and Vance curled his hands around Chanyeol’s shoulders before pressing his lips on his shoulder blade.

“I don’t always thank people, but—” He was cut off by the knock on the door. Scowling, Vance perked while Chanyeol was ready to get off the bed. “You don’t have to. It’s just Gordon.”

“Yeah, I don’t think I want the man to find us in bed naked for the second time in the morning.”

Vance could not help but glare at Gordon when the man walked in. Chanyeol was already in his pants as he hurried to the full-length mirror to neaten his tousled hair. “Master Sehun would like to have you ready to leave for the airport in a moment.” He told Chanyeol.

“Wait, what?!” Vance yelped, pulling himself off the bed and tied his robe. “Why is he leaving so soon?” it did not make sense. Just hours ago he was still moaning under Kai.

“We’re leaving?” Chanyeol asked indifferently. His nonchalance disappointed, if not saddened, Vance.

“You do not have to.” He suggested but Chanyeol cocked a brow at him. “Gordon, leave us for a moment.”

As the butler left, Chanyeol hurried to grab his bag before yanking out a shirt. “Finally.”

“After what’s happened, you certainly aren’t thinking about leaving so soon.”

Chanyeol looked up at him as if he were talking gibberish. “What are you talking about? Sehun’s leaving. I’m not gonna stick around in a place with the Count of all Vampires.”

“Are you forgetting that you just slept with the Count?”

“Yeah, well, what about when I become some other use to you? I really like my blood flowing in my veins.”

Vance’s heart sank. “So you’re just leaving?”

“Yes? Are you expecting me to stay? And do what?”

Vance had no answer to that.

“Look. We fucked. It was a…” he let out a heavy breath. “Amazing fuck. But come on. I fuck a lot of people. Especially after parties.” He shrugged. “Don’t flatter yourself, Count. I’d be more useful to you as a blood bag than a man who’s interested in you.”

There was nothing to be said to that. Vance dropped his gaze, for the first time in many, many decades, he felt defeated. “Some guts you have there, speaking that way to a Vampire when you alone are the prey here.”

“You would have killed me last night if you had the idea at all. You’ve got what you wanted, haven’t you?” he smirked, pulling the zip of his bag. “How do you feel being used by a human?” he scoffed and shoved past him. “Oh and… o’mighty Count Vance, no hard feelings, eh? Once a whore boy, always a whore boy. Vampire or not.” with that, he stormed out of the room.

Vance dropped to sit on the end of the bed and scrubbed his face with his bare palms. He was letting Chanyeol go. He shouldn’t. And yet, he loved the way his heart shattered. Not for the first time.

 

* * *

 

The Christmas tree stood in the corner, unadorned and plain and lifeless. The snow hugged the house as the wind howled, piling up snow in drifts, blinding the night with ice-white dust. A thick blanket of snow covered the porch of the small house Jongin and Sehun took so much happiness in buying just last year. But now, he stood alone in this dark living room, peering out the window as if he were waiting for Sehun to somehow return to his arms. In this bitter coldness, Jongin hugged himself for his own heat to radiate. From the day Sehun walked out on him, he had not stepped a foot outside. He was not sure that he was even breathing anymore. The only thing that ensured him that he was alive was his growling stomach from time to time. Sitting on the windowsill, Jongin had his head leaned against the cold glass, watching the intricate patterns of ice float weightlessly in the air. He had not meant to keep everything that had happened from Sehun. He had been selfish, yes. But only because he loved Sehun. And he didn’t even get the chance to apologize.

He blinked the tears away when he saw a car pull up the driveway. It was not Sehun’s car, he realized after a moment of sudden excitement. Wide-eyed, he watched a man exit the black car once its lights were turned off. That instant, Jongin lost all coherence as his eyes perceived the figure of a man he had never been able to forget from the first time they kissed. He scurried off the windowsill and almost lost his footing when the doorbell rang.

He fought the gasp off when he yanked the door open and Adrian stood before him, jaw filled with stubble and hair damp from the snow. “Adrian.” Jongin breathed out as his heart hammered in his chest.

“Hello, Jongin.” Adrian’s deep voice sent a jolt down Jongin’s spine. “How are you?”

“Where have you been?” his voice only came out as a whisper while his eyes remained ballooned. “You just left.”

“It’s actually a long—” he was cut off when Jongin’s palm struck a side of his face.

“What the fuck did you tell Sehun?! You just show up after two fucking years and fuck my life up?!” he raised another hand, but Adrian caught his wrist before shoving him and stepped in. Jongin almost reeled at the Vampire scent Adrian reeked of.

Slamming the door shut behind him, Adrian rubbed his hair-lined jaw and groaned. “Is that any way to greet a friend after so long?”

“What the hell… happened to you?” Jongin gaped at him, almost intimidated by how huge and powerful Adrian looked, standing like a tower before him.

“We can either stand here and bicker like children or you can calm down and let me explain.” Adrian presented. His leather jacket only made his broad shoulders stand out even more prominently. He looked like an animal, even in his human form.

“You have no place in my house, Adrian. Get the fuck out.” Jongin spat, scowling.

“Really? And Sehun does? How long has it been, Jongin? How long has it been since I left and you can’t have seemed to forget about me, can you?”

Jongin felt his stomach churn. “Stop your bullshit. Get out or I will kick you out.”

Adrian sighed. “Look. I’m not here to argue. I’ve… missed you, Jongin.”


	14. Thirteen

“Why leave so soon, Sehun?” his voice was carried in echoes through the main hallway as Sehun descended the carpeted staircase with eyes red as blood and complexion paler than a Vampire’s. Vance uncrossed his arms and dropped them to his sides when his eyes fell on Chanyeol who followed after Sehun.

“There is nothing left for me to do here, Vance.” Sehun muttered, almost as lifeless as Vance was at the moment. He kept his gaze averted from Chanyeol at all costs. With a faint smile playing on his lips, Vance cupped Sehun’s sharp shoulders. He felt Sehun shudder, if not flinch at his touch. Then Sehun nailed him with a ruthless regard through his bloodshot eyes. “All my life…” he started as Vance began to lower his hands from his shoulders. “I thought you were my saviour. All my life, I took you for my only family. But now, I just wish I never met you.”

“Now, Sehun. What have I done so wrong that you—”

“I won’t be your puppet anymore, Vance. Sure, you can sire me all you want. And I will obey you. But the respect and the… love I had for you will never be there again.” he seemed steady as he spoke. “Stay out of my life. It is you who doesn’t know how to love or will ever be loved. All that you ever sought was entertainment for your own pleasure. You have stronger heirs now. You don’t need me, do you? And you wouldn’t hesitate to eliminate me out of the line. So, here. I want nothing to do with you or your goddamn monarchy anymore. I will not go by the title as your princeling. I want to be a free man, Vance. And I want you to give me that.”

Vance’s smile did not falter but it was not alive either. He nodded and palmed a side of Sehun’s face. Leaning in, he pressed his lips on Sehun’s cheekbone before pulling back. “Go. You _are_ a free man, Sehun.” _I’ve already taken too much away from you._ He held both sides of Sehun’s face and brushed his lips on Sehun’s forehead. “Merry Christmas.”

Sehun did not reply as he brushed past him. Gordon held the door open, showcasing the red taxi that waited outside. Sighing, Vance turned his head to face Chanyeol. “He’s not going to see you again, is he?”

“I’m afraid so.” Vance still smiled despite the swollen heart. “And neither will I be seeing you again because if I do, you will not walk away so easily.”

Chanyeol dropped his head as if to hide the grin that formed on his face. “All right.” He shrugged with his backpack slung on one shoulder. “I slept with Count Dracula. That’s some adventure there.” He snorted and Vance clenched his jaw.

“Stop pushing your luck. I’m known for my patience, but I have a reputation for making my victims suffer before—”

“Oh shut up.” he grabbed the back of Vance’s neck and yanked him close, with more force than necessary, before he crushed Vance’s lips under his own. Taken aback, Vance stood frozen and he almost had to stand on his toes with his palms pressed against Chanyeol’s chest, feeling the rhythmic and beautiful beat of Chanyeol’s heart. His lips were too soft, but still swollen from last night. Vance smiled against them. “I’m not that bad of an asshole.” He breathed, pulling away from the kiss. “I just wanted to make you feel bad for a moment. For everything that you said last night.”

Vance blinked once as if he understood. “You will make a fine Vampire, you know.”

“I like my burgers and beers. Blood… not so much.” He smirked. “But if you’re still interested, Count, I can show you the fun part of being human.”

Vance almost lowered his head as blood rose to his cheeks. “I’m not sure we’ll being seeing each other any time soon, my little human.”

Chanyeol licked his lips and inclined his head forward. “Yeah. Okay.” He sighed. “Good… bye, then.”

As he walked past Vance, the latter muttered an almost inaudible _goodbye._ Closing his eyes for a second, Vance heard Gordon shutting the front doors before he heard the tread of Kai’s footsteps on the floor above him. “Gordon.”

“Yes, sire?”

“Take the rest of the day off.”

“Sire?” he sounded both surprised and shocked.

“Lock the doors on your way out.” With that, Vance bolted up the stairs. He stopped right before Kai who came to a standstill in the hallway with the child sleeping in his arms. “What do you think you’re doing?” he growled, hands clenched into fists at the sides.

“What does it look like, Vance? I’m taking him away.” Kai snapped back, but in a much lower voice as if to not to wake the child up.

“And who says you’re permitted to do so?” he took a step closer.

“Stop this, Vance. All of this. Can’t you see? No matter how hard you try, you will never have any of us on your side unless you have us sired.”

“You think you have nothing to hold on to now that Sehun’s left you for good now?” gritting his teeth, he ripped the side table’s leg off and let the vases on it topple and shatter on the floor. The child stirred and Kai pressed a hand on his back to hold him in place. Twirling the wooden stake in his hand, Vance advanced forward. “You’re testing my patience, Kai. I have endured your demeanours for far too long. Provoke me any further and you will be sorry. Return the child.”

Kai scoffed. “What is it, Vance? You’re scared that you will not have a leverage to hold against Adrian if you lose his son? We both know he will be the first to fight the sire bond and rip your heart out and by right, he’s the next Count, am I not right? This is your gamble, isn’t it, Vance? You’re scared of Adrian, aren’t you? You might even be able to work your way away from me. But Adrian is stronger than what you initially thought. So, what happens if I—who can already go against most of your orders—take away the only trump card you hold against your death?”

Vance stared at him, not wide-eyed or jaw-dropped. But Kai had not been entirely wrong. Adrian, by gene, was stronger. But Kai as a Berserker in his true form would be mightier than them both. “Kai, if you want me dead, you would have done it yourself.”

“All right. Then give me one darn good reason why I shouldn’t.”

Vance let out a laugh. “You’re still having second thoughts. You want me in your trap, but you don’t exactly want me dead. Because you still want me to undo the compulsion I have on Sehun.”

Kai did not reply.

“So.” Vance held his ground a few feet before Kai. “You’re quite right about Adrian, though. He has a drive within him, an anger of not having anything he desired. An angrier man is stronger than the strongest man.” He smiled. “Not to mention he is a natural leader and when compared to both you and your… tame brother, he is a far better Alpha. Imagine what greatness it will bring if a hybrid were meant to lead both the mightiest supernatural creatures of the world?”

Kai’s eyes bulged out. “What?”

“You were a suitable candidate. Your aggression is admirable. But now that you’ve proved to have gone against me, what use are you to me? You’re stronger than your brother, but we both know who’s wiser. You were never the one to make the right decisions. Who do you think sent Adrian to draw Sehun back here? You, my dear friend, have a weakness. And I bared it out to you in plain sight. And now, Sehun will never belong to you. That’s the price he will pay for choosing you and your brother over my sire. And you think I fear Adrian?” he snickered. “You do not know me entirely. Let me tell you a story. Sehun.” a smirk tugged at his lips. “Was a boy who had nothing in life. I gave him this. But I also made sure he would not have a life to return to. The night he transformed, I made him feed on his own family. The horror of it had haunted him for so long. But that night, I also made sure that he will forever fear the people he once called his family. I became his family the minute I changed his father into a Vampire, who already loathed him enough. Then I made Sehun believe, the beauty of compulsion, that he was the one who made me save his dying father. That, too, has haunted Sehun, the guilt of saving the devil he called his father and having to run from him for so many years.”

The child wriggled as he cracked his eyes open and struggled to get down. Kai let him and lowered him to floor but the child, like a parasite, hugged Kai’s leg, staring at Vance with horrified eyes. Kai, on the other hand, seemed like he was about to bring the Hell down. Vance smiled smugly, fixing his eyes on Kai’s murderous ones.

“And now, look at what you’ve done to us both? Kai, it’s not just Adrian I hold a trump card against. As much as I love Sehun, I know that he is your only weakness and I won’t hesitate to use him against you. However, you’re no use to me other than as a henchman now, Kai. Since you’re fighting the sire bond, I’m guessing you would let the affection you have for your brother stand in the way and something tells me it will win over my sire bond. Which is why…” he probed the stake in his hand and looked up with a rowdy grin. “I already sent Adrian back to Jackson to get rid of your precious First Alpha. My best guess with you not there since you will be busy fighting me here, is that your brother will be dead by tomorrow.”

That moment, Vance saw fear in Kai’s eyes. One that he had never seen before. Kai stroked Lenz’s hair and gently pushed him away from him. “Why?”

“Like I said, Kai. I want to rule two of the greatest night creatures in this world. Once Adrian becomes the First Alpha, since there will be no one else to claim the post, I’ll need that child to rule over Adrian. So, hand him over and I’ll end you less painfully. And if you so much as dare to harm me, Sehun will reach Adrian right in time for him to die mercilessly in his hands as well.”

Kai’s hands were trembling as his face turned grey. “And if I kill you?”

“My compulsion remains nevertheless and your precious Sehun will never be able to remember you. Neither will Adrian stop from ripping your brother’s head off. Oh. While I’m at it, let me let you on with another secret. That day, right after I erased Sehun’s memories of you, I told him that he loves Jongin. I compelled him to believe that he loves your brother. I very much doubt Sehun is in love with him when he is irrevocably in love with you.”

That was the last straw. Kai lurched forward with the speed and vigour of a lightning before he clawed Vance’s neck and slammed him against the wall until it cracked behind Vance. Groaning, Vance retaliated with a blow of the stake across Kai’s face and stomped his boot on Kai’s chest, sending him flying back until he crashed on the side table. The child’s wail added to the cacophony and chaos as Kai scurried back to his feet, tearing his own stake from the table.

Flashing a toothy grin, Vance spat, “I’ve taken a hybrid down before, Kai. Much stronger than you.”

Kai began to growl as the wooden leg began to rupture in his grip while his eyes dyed themselves jet black with streaks and specks of gold. He bared his fangs at Vance as veins protruded all over his neck and temples. He darted the stake at Vance, aiming for his face but Vance effortlessly caught before hurling both the stakes at Kai which struck the man by the chest, jutting all the way through. Kai braced himself against the wall behind him with blood spilling out his mouth.

“You’re not going to change into a wolf, are you? It has been two years since you’ve transformed. Must have lost the touch.” Vance scoffed, pulling another leg of the table before driving it right through Kai’s neck, piercing his throat. He choked on his own blood. “You’re not weak, Kai. But you’re scared. You’re… at your most vulnerable.” Without any warning, Vance plunged his hand through Kai’s chest, breaking every rib in his way and fisted Kai’s heart. A tear rolled down the corner of Kai’s eye as he suffocated. “Why aren’t you fighting?” Vance snarled, clenching his heart harder.

 

* * *

 

The night could not be calmer and Jongin could not be more agitated. The feathery flakes of snow drifted through the air, caking the pavement he trod on, side by side with Adrian. The simple heat—which was not as strong as it used to be—of Adrian’s skin formed an unbearable sob in his throat. A short extend of their arms, and they will be holding hands. The thought swarmed Jongin’s mind. Adrian quietly walked beside him, aimlessly looking up at the yellow street lights.

“This place seems like a lifetime ago.” He sighed and Jongin hid the lower half of his face in the muffler around his neck. He was not sure if he bought the whole Vance transforming him and Kai into hybrids in order to protect his own skin at that time or not, but he saw no reason as to why Adrian would lie. However, he did not understand why Adrian hadn’t returned all those months.

“Why did you come back?”

“I told you. Sehun deserved the truth.”

Jongin nodded, although he didn’t buy that either. “He’s home, then?”

“He was the last time I saw him.”

“And Kai? How is he?”

“He’s fine, too. More than fine when he saw Sehun again.”

That sent a pang to Jongin’s heart. What was he doing? He should not be roaming the town in the cold night with the man who drove Sehun away from him. But he honestly did not see what wrong Adrian had done. Jongin had never been fair to him. He looked up at his house on the hill again and heaved a sigh. “How is Lenz?”

“He’s absolutely fine. A little taller.” Something told Jongin that Adrian was hiding some sort of melancholy behind that smile.

“He must be three now, huh?”

“Yes.”

Jongin came to a stop and Adrian went two steps ahead before stopping himself. “Why are you here now, Adrian?”

“Jongin… despite everything that you’ve done, I will always miss you.”

“And why? I have been nothing but a completely unfair jerk to you.”

Adrian lowered his head for a moment and when he looked up, he wore a soft expression as if to coax Jongin. “How much do you love Sehun?”

“Enough.”

“How much is _enough_ , Jongin?”

“Adrian, you left. I was about to leave with you but you left! Stop pinning this on me.”

“Answer my question. Do you love him enough to let yourself mate with him? Or are you incapable of even knotting with him?”

Jongin’s jaw fell slacking, but he quickly snapped his mouth shut. “If you hadn’t showed up, Sehun and I would have been perfectly fine.”

“You both would be lying to one another for the rest of your lives.”

Shaking his head, Jongin strutted past him, wanting to get himself away from Adrian as fast as his feet could carry him. Adrian bolted over and blocked his path. “You should leave, Adrian. You’ve caused enough trouble for me.”

“Really? Do you really want me to leave? Do you know why Sehun doesn’t remember Kai? Because Vance made him forget him. But, Jongin, as soon as Sehun remembers Kai, you and I both know that he will run back to Kai’s arms in a heartbeat.”

“Stop.”

Adrian panted as he took Jongin’s face into his hands. “I thought I loved Lena. I did. But not the way I love you. Quit fooling yourself that you love Sehun. You may, but just as how torn I am, you are, too.”

“Adrian, I said stop.” But he couldn’t bring himself to push Adrian away. Hybrid or not, Adrian was still the man who had once touched him in a way not Sehun or any other guy had. “You were gone for two years. I have moved on. I’m with Sehun and I do love him regardless of how I feel about you.”

Adrian dropped his hands from Jongin’s face and clenched Jongin’s neck instead. There wasn’t just frustration in his eyes. Bloodthirst sheened Adrian’s gaze and Jongin winced at his tightening hand around his neck. “Would you still love him knowing that he’s probably fucking your brother as we speak?!”

Jongin lost it at that. He shoved Adrian back. “He wouldn’t! What happened to you? The man I knew would never—”

“The man you knew loved you. And you tossed him aside as if he meant nothing to you except some fuck you turned to when Sehun or Kai denied you that. You are the most selfish person I’ve ever met in my life and do you know why you will never win? Because you’re a coward, Jongin. And you’re bloody damn good at breaking everyone for your own selfish sakes!”

With a lump in his throat, Jongin bit back on the tears and wiped his face with a palm. “You’re right. I am selfish.” He admitted. “I never did anyone right. I lost my brother. I lost Sehun’s trust. Well, I should have lost it the minute I slept with you. And I lost the one man who would have truly made everything in my upside down life right. But amidst them all, I lost myself, Adrian.” He paused to take in Adrian’s powerful gaze. “I will make things right. Tell Sehun that he can come home and I won’t be here when he returns. And if he’s still refusing to talk to me, let him know that I’ve never been sorrier for what I hid from him.” he blinked the welled up tears away and immediately started towards the door when Adrian caught his arm.

“And me? What of me?”

Jongin looked up at him past the haze of his tears in confusion. “I can’t, Adrian. I don’t deserve you either. I think you said it well yourself.”

“Just tell me one thing. Did I mean anything to you at all?”

“Do you really want to find out?” Jongin frowned.

Adrian clenched his jaw. Then he hauled Jongin into the house before slamming the door shut. “Tonight, yes. I’ll put you out of your misery tomorrow.”

Jongin did not have the leisure of contemplating what he had just said when Adrian gently pressed him against the door with one of his big strong hands curled around Jongin’s head and the other latched on Jongin’s hip. “Adrian.” He exhaled when Adrian’s lips brushed his lower lip. He did not fight the kiss when it came to it. Snaking his arms around Adrian’s shoulders, he let his fingers tangle in Adrian’s smooth hair. As their lips and tongues ventured their limits around one another, Adrian effortlessly lifted Jongin’s legs and wrapped them around his hips. His hands hoisted Jongin up, bracing his thighs. For a fleeting moment, Jongin moaned at Adrian’s grazing stubble when their jaws brushed. Perhaps if he had given Adrian a chance, perhaps if Adrian had fought harder for him, Jongin would have had a family now, with Adrian and Lenz.

Against and in Adrian’s muscular arms, Jongin submitted. It was in his nature to surrender to the grips of a wolf of the dominating tier. But it was more than that. He felt fulfilled. He felt as if he was finally where he was supposed to be. And more than anything, he wanted Adrian to share the bestial hunger he felt. Even as Adrian carried him all the way to the bed, Jongin kept their lips locked. He was laid down and it always surprised Jongin that a hard, powerful man like Adrian could be this gentle with his touches. And he did not want that tonight. He wanted Adrian to be anything but gentle.

Adrian broke the kiss and pulled back a little with a thin string of saliva joining their lower lips. Jongin’s hands slid into Adrian’s shirt and he pressed his palms onto Adrian’s abs. “There are some things you can never ask of Sehun.” Adrian breathed against Jongin’s throbbing lips as if he had read Jongin through and through. As if he can see Jongin’s darkest desires. Adrian straightened up, kneeling between Jongin’s knees and pulled his shirt off. Jongin did not waste any time and peeled his own clothes off, but left the pants on. Adrian ripped his belt off and held Jongin’s wrists together with one hand before gently pushing him to lie on his stomach. Jongin did not fight it either as he hid his burning face into the pillow as Adrian tied his hands to the headboard with the belt. He let out a soft a moan when he felt Adrian’s hand slipping beneath his waist and Adrian stroked his stomach before unbuckling Jongin’s belt. Yanking it out, Adrian twirled the leather around his hand before leaning down and kissed Jongin’s shoulder blade. Blood stirred in Jongin’s loins when Adrian dragged his warm tongue along the cleft of his back before his fingers were hooked into the waistband of his jeans. Adrian pulled it down just a little and the instant Jongin felt the wetness of Adrian’s tongue on his tailbone, he clenched his eyes close and parted his lips to draw in air. His hands clutched at the belt that held his wrists together as Adrian’s tongue slid down the crack of his ass, tonguing the rim of muscles.


	15. FINAL

The only way there was for Jongin to make things right with Adrian was to give him this. And this will also act as the rightful punishment Jongin deserved—to be loved by the man for just one night and to live the rest of his life without him. He could not bring himself to ask Adrian to stay and neither did he want Adrian to stop tonight. His tongue was warm where it was pressed, stroking the sensitive creased muscle. His hands were clawing into Jongin’s butt cheeks to keep them stretched as his tongue and lips wetted his opening, coaxing and caressing it. Adrian’s lips kissed their way up to the tailbone again before his teeth grazed the flesh of Jongin’s ass. It took all of his effort to not to perk back and grind against Adrian’s tongue as he buried his face into the pillow, letting the soft feathers muffle his embarrassing moans. But when Adrian tugged the pants lower, he could not help a groan of his own. Jongin gripped the belt that uncomfortably held his wrists together when Adrian stretched his ass cleft again before stroking his puckered opening with two of his dry fingers. Again, Jongin had to fight to urge to not jerk back against the contact. He slowly raised his head and glanced to Adrian with his lips parted to gasp in the humid air of the room. Adrian had his own eyes lowered to where his fingers moved, gently but with eagerness. He slid his hand between Jongin’s legs and thumbed the hole while his palm cupped his balls. His eyes then shot up to meet Jongin’s and without any fair warning, he leaned forward, pressed his chest on Jongin’s sweat-beaded back and claimed Jongin’s lips. With Adrian’s hand massaging his balls, thumb stroking his hole, lips and tongue sloppily kissing his own, Jongin did not fight the moans that Adrian ultimately swallowed.

“What do you want me to do, Jongin?” he mumbled into Jongin’s mouth before their tongues swirled, dancing an erotic dance around one another. He broke the kiss to drag his saliva slicked lips along Jongin’s shoulder and the back of his neck.

“Fuck me, Adrian.” He panted out before Adrian kissed him full on mouth again. “Ahh…” he uncontrollably whined when Adrian straightened back up and dragged the end of other belt down Jongin’s butt crack, gently brushing the opening. “Fuck.” Jongin hissed when the belt struck across his ass. Adrian then tossed the belt aside before stripping Jongin down to nothing but bared nakedness. He froze for a moment, kneeling between Jongin’s thighs. Jongin bit his lip, looking back at Adrian, who was still in his pants, staring at Jongin’s back with a frown etched on his eyebrows. “Adrian?”

He did not reply as he undid the button and fly of his pants. Jongin did not pull his gaze away this time. He wanted to taste every inch of Adrian’s body, trace every part of his waistline, abs, chest, neck, the thin trail of hair that led to his dick, with his tongue and lips. Adrian looked to him and with one effortless tug, he ripped the belt around Jongin’s wrists off and flopped him to lie on his back. Jongin rose to his knees before dropping on his fours and kissed the prominent cloven line of Adrian’s hard, toned chest. He did not move after he had entangled his strong long fingers in Jongin’s hair as Jongin dragged his mouth down Adrian’s body, tasting, almost savouring the slabs of perfectly sculptured abs. Jongin kept his eyes on Adrian who kept his fixed on him when sucked Adrian’s skin, tonguing the trail of hair below his navel. His hand slowly slipped from Jongin’s hair and he drew it down Jongin’s back before he slid one of his finger between Jongin’s butt cheeks. This time, Jongin was more than motivated to perk his rear when Adrian pushed the tip of his finger in. His other hand grabbed the back of Jongin’s head as Jongin pulled Adrian’s hardened cock out of his boxers. Jongin shot Adrian a glimpse with his mouth almost drooling at the sight of Adrian’s stone-hard long, thick erection. He still remembered how hot and hard it had felt against his own when Adrian had humped him dry the first night. But now, Jongin wanted it to swell thicker inside him. He could already taste the pain that he would have to go through if Adrian were to swell inside him.

Adrian sucked on his own middle finger, smearing it with enough spit before he bent lower again to push the finger into Jongin’s tight hole. With his finger curling around the soft insides of his, Jongin dragged his tongue along the underside of Adrian’s cock, licking the thick foreskin before he tongued the slit of the cockhead. Adrian finally gave into a moan and harshly clutched at Jongin’s hair as Jongin kept teasing his tip. “Jongin.” He threw his head back, groaning with Jongin’s tongue stroking the leaking slit of his cock. Jongin’s mouth went dry, wanting to take all of him in. But when he wrapped his mouth around the shaft, he could not swallow more than just the cockhead. Adrian carefully pulled his finger out and cupped both sides of Jongin’s head before slowly thrusting into his mouth. His tip slammed the back of Jongin’s throat without even pushing in fully. The thought of Adrian thrusting just as gently into him both excited and agitated Jongin.

He pulled back with saliva dribbling down the corners of his mouth and Adrian hauled him up to kiss his sloppy mouth, pressing him chest against chest. Breaking the kiss momentarily, Jongin grabbed the tube of lotion from the bedside table before handing it to Adrian. He then wrapped his arms around Adrian’s shoulders and reconnected their mouths before pulling him down to lie right on top of him. Adrian pressed himself between Jongin’s legs as he slid his greased fingers in. The feeling was both inviting and invasive. Jongin did not even want to think about Sehun at this moment, but he could not help when he found himself contrasting Sehun’s delicate fingers to Adrian’s ruthlessly strong ones inside him. Jongin clenched his eyes shut and kissed him harder as Adrian stretched him. He wanted to feel just Adrian tonight. It felt as if he had been waiting a lifetime for this night. If only Adrian had been more determined to win Jongin’s heart a long time ago… Jongin had broken up with Sehun the minute he realized his brother truly did love Sehun and Sehun, too, was in love with Kai. But then they were left behind by both Adrian and Kai and Sehun proclaimed his love for Jongin. At the time, Jongin could not leave Sehun. He was just as confused, but how was he to be blamed for anything? He did let Sehun go. He did not hold Sehun back. It was Sehun who confessed his love for Jongin that day. He wanted this life with Jongin and Jongin gave him the love Sehun wanted, but not the love he deserved. Jongin did love him. But he was not in love with him and he knew it was the same for Sehun. He did genuinely love Jongin but he was in love with Kai—a man he no longer remembered. Even then, Jongin had not been selfish. He did not covet a man who loved another. But he figured Sehun would be better off without having to look for a man who had abandoned him. All that Kai left was scents for Jongin to trail in the woods that confirmed the fact that he was alive.

Jongin had been the one who had sacrificed his own happiness to keep Sehun happy. And yet, he had somehow become the bad guy in all of their eyes. He was the one who was still hurting to this very day. He could not abandon the man who loved him so much, but he was not happy with him either. Jongin was ready to even marry Sehun if it guaranteed Sehun’s happiness. Jongin was not going to live long anyway. He’d rather make Sehun—who had never been loved enough—feel loved in this short life than find his own happiness. Besides, Jongin had always been the second best anyway. It no longer bothered him.

But here his happiness was. In his arms. Jongin disjoined the kiss with Adrian’s lips throbbing against his own and stared into his dark eyes. Adrian held his gaze even while his fingers moved inside Jongin. Pressing a hand upon Adrian’s cheek, Jongin faintly smiled. If he left with Adrian, Sehun might come home to another abandonment. He closed his eyes and pressed their foreheads together, drawing in a deep breath, inhaling the orgasmic scent of Adrian’s skin. “I love you.” he breathed, brushing their lips together.

Adrian pulled back and pinned him with a sorrowful gaze. Jongin knew he had said something _wrong_. But he could not take it back. “You sure you want to do this?” was all that he asked.

Jongin nodded despite the heartbreak. “Yes. Are you?”

Adrian replied with a kiss. Jongin was not sure what was driving Adrian to do this. If they mated, they will both live the rest of their lives yearning for one another until one of them died. Adrian did not seem like he was going to ask Jongin to run away with him either. Jongin was not going to waste his time now pondering over what Adrian’s angle might be.

His mouth was blocked by Adrian’s, thus the cry when Adrian pushed the head of his thick cock in, stretching Jongin’s opening further. He paused for a moment to let Jongin get comfortable with the sudden insertion. Then he slid in further, little by little, until he was fully in, clenched by Jongin’s hole. “Fuck.” He growled into Jongin’s mouth before he struggled to pull out of Jongin’s tight hole again and slide back in. Jongin bit back on a sob and almost sank his teeth into Adrian’s lip before he locked his ankles on Adrian’s back, enveloping his waist with his trembling legs. His eyes welled up with stinging tears before they spilled from the corners of his eyes. “Jongin.” Adrian exhaled, peppering Jongin’s cheek and jaw with tender brushes of his lips as his hips began to pick up the pace of their thrusts.

He snarled out a curse and planted his fists into the pillow on either sides of Jongin’s head as he pushed himself up, eyes and jaw clenched tight. Gasping for air, Jongin dug his fingernails into the skin of Adrian’s shoulder blades as his opening began to contract. Adrian hissed and growled before grabbing both of Jongin’s hands and pinned them on the pillow, crushing them beneath his palms. “Adrian.” Jongin gasped. “It’s okay. It’s okay.” He blurted out and kissed his lips. “You’re not hurting me. Don’t hold yourself back.” he was biting his own tongue as he spat the words out. The pain was seeping into his soul, but he did not want Adrian to delay it any longer. “Knot inside me.” He whispered against Adrian’s cheek and kept his eyes closed to prevent the tears from spilling.

He was almost knocked into oblivion with Adrian swelling inside him. Their sweat-drenched bodies stayed locked and Adrian looked like he was going through his own share of pain. Jongin, despite the agony he was enduring, reached up and kissed him. Adrian released one of his hands to fist Jongin’s cock to distract him from the torture. Will Adrian remember this even when Jongin died?

He was fully swollen before he collapsed onto Jongin and they laid there in a mess of limbs and wetness with Adrian’s nose nuzzled into the crook of Jongin’s neck. Jongin tried to not to pay much attention to the pain, instead he concentrated on the lukewarm heat of Adrian’s body. He could never touch another man. He can never be with another man. This scent, this heat that captured Jongin in the chasm of love and sex will never free him again. He was now bound to Adrian by body and soul. There was no turning back. He was not sure if being a hybrid meant Adrian had a choice, but Jongin certainly did not.

“I’m sorry.” Adrian muttered. “I… love you, Jongin.”

A smile faltered on Jongin’s lips. “Don’t be sorry for that.”

“That’s not what I’m sorry for.”

“What do you mean?” Jongin could barely bring the words out of his mouth with Adrian’s cock filling him to the fullest.

“Nothing.” He lifted his head and met Jongin’s gaze. “I love you. But I can’t let Lenz be harmed.”

“Adrian... You will never need to choose between me and your son.” He was not sure why Adrian would bring up such a matter. But he decided to not to ask when Adrian opened his mouth again.

“I want you to know that I will always be sorry for everything that I’ve done to you.” his despondency was palpable in his voice as tears sheened his eyes.

Jongin smiled through the pleasing misery and pulled Adrian into a kiss.

 

* * *

 

Gritting his teeth, Vance shoved the stake deeper into Kai’s neck as his hand tightened around his heart. “What’s wrong, little wolf? Lost all hopes?” he sneered, almost annoyed at Kai who was not even bothering to lift a finger to fight back. Instead, he was staring at Vance with bloodshot eyes while the metallic liquid seeped into his clothes, baring the last bit of gore in Kai’s life. “By tomorrow, everything that you love will be far beyond your reach. Your brother dead. Your pack in my hands. Your Sehun gone. This is what happens when you fall short in my good graces. You lose. And I win. Always.”

“I fucking doubt that.” Sehun’s voice boomed into the hallway before Vance even caught his scent through the pungent smell of Kai’s blood. The next thing Vance knew was Sehun jolting out of nowhere before he shoved Vance and stomped him hard on the chest, sending him plastered against the wall. Without sparing a second, Sehun yanked the stakes out of Kai’s body and plunged them into Vance’s stomach before he drove another straight into Vance’s chest. Gasping, Vance’s eyes bulged out when he felt the tip of the stake press against his heart. Sehun had his jaw gripped tight and hand clutching Vance’s neck. “Fucking move and I’ll rip your head off right here and now.”

“You won’t.” Vance laughed nervously despite the stake. “You can’t. You’re still sired to me.”

“No, Vance. I’m a free man now, remember?!”

“We’ve heard enough.” Kai shook the wounds off and straightened up before bolting forward. When Sehun stepped aside, Kai gripped Vance’s neck and sank his fangs into the side of the neck with his eyes as golden as a wolf’s. A sharp scream escaped Vance’s when he felt the Werewolf venom sink in. He pulled the stake out of Vance’s chest and turned him around, shoving his front up the wall and nailed the stake onto Vance’s back. Letting out another brutal cry, Vance dropped to his knees before he felt one of Kai’s boots press against his shoulder blade and Kai fisted and yanked his hair until his head arched all the way back. “Now you know the truth.” He told Sehun who was standing nearby with his jaw dropped and tears rolling down his cheeks. Vance shuddered when Kai grabbed his jaw from under.

“Sehun—”

“Shut up.” Kai hissed. His venom would not kill Vance, but it was certainly eating his insides, weakening him. Sehun covered his mouth as if he could not bear to watch the scene before his eyes.

“You’re the one who made my life a Hell.” Sehun spat shakily. “And here I thought I was saved from Hell by you.”

“Sehun, he’s sent Adrian to kill Jongin.” Kai rasped and handed Sehun his phone. “Call Jongin.”

Sehun nodded as if he was dazed, wiping the tears as his fingers fumbled. Vance’s head swam as his eyes began to fall heavy. “He’s not picking up.”

Kai mercilessly hauled Vance’s hair back and growled, “What’s Adrian’s number?”

“I don’t know.” Vance grunted and he was being honest.

Sehun dialled again and this time, it went through. “Jongin! Thank God. Is Adrian there?... I fucking know he’s there, pass the phone to him!”

Vance could barely keep his vision clear and when Sehun held the phone out to him, he stared up at Sehun. Who knew this shopboy would be Vance’s demise? The thought made him laugh. “Call the thing off.” Kai ordered.

“Adrian.” Vance murmured.

“Vance?” Adrian sounded surprised on the other end of the line.

“Don’t harm him.” was all that Vance could bring out.

Kai snatched the phone and rambled something into it as Vance kept his half-lidded eyes on Sehun as a tired smile crept up to his face. Sehun averted his disappointed gaze before he lowered to crouch next to Vance. “Did you compel me… to kill my family?” he asked with a sob choking him.

Vance closed his eyes and sighed. “I did your whole existence a favour, Sehun.”

Sehun pulled the stake out of his abdomen and Vance unconsciously yelped out a scream. “You were a man I was respected. A man I once loved. I’m not going to kill you, Vance. Because you’re already dead for all that I care.”

Kai released Vance’s hair and dropped his foot from his back. “Cross our path again and you will face the Berserker, not me.” Kai snarled and yanked the stake from his back out before shoving Vance to drop onto the floor with his booted foot. He crouched and cupped Vance’s chin. “Because you brought Sehun into my life, I’m not gonna kill you. But you will live the rest of your life knowing that you’re worthless and you’ve failed. And you’ll do well to remember, Adrian and I will always be there to end your pathetic life should you meddle with our lives again.” he shoved Vance’s face away and rose to his feet. Turning to Sehun, he stared at him for a moment. “Let’s leave.” He held his hand out. Sehun painstakingly considered the hand for a very short instant and slid his palm across Kai’s bloody hand. Curling his hand around Sehun’s, Kai spared Vance one last look of spite before walking over to the child that sat curled into a ball with eyes screaming with fear. Sehun picked the boy up and Kai took Sehun’s hand again.

Vance lied there as the Werewolf venom devoured him and only heard their footsteps fade away before the world caved in. He had lost. For once, he had lost. He flashed his eyes open and grit his teeth. Forcing himself back onto his feet, he took hold of the stake and with a fire engulfing him from within, he bolted across the hallway and almost had the stake stuck through Kai’s back before Kai spun around and plunged his fist into Vance’s chest. He ripped the heart out with a single powerful tug and booted Vance in the empty chest, sending him plummeting onto the floor.

 

* * *

 

“Ah, fuck!” Jongin helplessly cried with Adrian slamming into him as soon as he had begun to wane. Groaning like a beast, Adrian hauled Jongin up to hold him against his chest and seated Jongin on his lap.

“Come for me.” Adrian gasped down Jongin’s neck as Jongin rocked his hips to ride Adrian’s pulsating cock. He instantly recalled the first night Adrian had asked him to come. Only this time, they were closer than ever, bonded in a sense that only they comprehended. His hand was pumping Jongin’s cock just as hard as his fucked Jongin. Curling his hand around the back of Adrian’s head, Jongin held onto the damp hair as their lips met in another hasty and deep kiss.

“Adrian! Ah!” the moans and screams were inescapable at this point. He felt Adrian burst into his catharsis before he himself reached his climax. With Adrian’s come filled inside him and his own come all over their chests, Adrian pulled him into an exhausted kiss.

Sobbing for air, Jongin pressed his face onto Adrian’s shoulder and gathered his breaths with Adrian still buried deep inside him. They remained in the wet and sticky embrace before Jongin’s phone rang, pulling them apart at once. Adrian pulled out of him with a frown playing on his brows. Jongin dropped back on the bed and wiped his forehead, pushing his hair back as he panted. Adrian hovered over him again and kissed the lips that now belonged entirely to him. The phone kept ringing. Jongin ignored the first call but when the second alarmed him, he broke the kiss and drew himself away from Adrian. “Jongin, don’t answer it.” He whined.

“It might be Sehun.” Jongin muttered under his breath and fished the phone out of his jeans’ pocket. He blinked at the foreign number and realized it was not even local. He picked it up at once. “Hello?”

“Jongin! Thank God!”

“Sehun?! Where are yo—”

“Is Adrian there?”

Jongin felt numb with an electric jolt surging down his spine. “W-what—”

“I fucking know he’s there, pass the phone to him!”

Blinking, Jongin turned to Adrian who was scowling before he took the phone from Jongin himself.

“Adrian.”

“Vance?” Adrian’s eyes widened.

“Don’t harm him.”

Jongin’s lips parted. _Don’t harm who?_

“Vance?” Adrian gasped again but the next voice Jongin faintly heard stirred blood in his lungs.

“Adrian, whatever you do, don’t fucking do what this bastard initially told you to do.” Kai blurted out on the other end. “I have Lenz. He’s safe. We’ll be there by tomorrow.”

Adrian’s eyes were now on Jongin. His skin burned everywhere that Adrian had touched. “Okay.” Adrian spat and tossed the phone aside before extending an arm to touch Jongin.

“Was that… Kai?” Jongin did not need to ask. He knew that it was Kai.

“Yes.” Adrian answered, cupping a side of Jongin’s face.

“Who was he talking about?”

“Never mind that.” He sighed and pulled Jongin’s face closer before brushing their lips together. “Everything is going to be all right from now on.”

Jongin was far too tired to ask for explanation, but he could not stop himself. “How did Sehun know—”

“Leave Jackson with me.” Adrian cut him off.

For a moment, Jongin thought he had heard wrong. He blinked blankly at the man. “What do you mean?”

“You, me and Lenz. Let’s just… leave. We’ll go somewhere, wherever you want.”

Jongin could not believe his ears. Was he dreaming or was Adrian actually asking him to leave with him? “Adrian…”

“Please don’t say no again.”

“Yes.” He breathed out. “Yes, Adrian. Yes. But… Sehun—”

“You and I both know who he belongs with. They will find their way, trust me.” He swiped his thumbs along Jongin’s cheekbones. Smiling and panting a little, Jongin nodded.

“Okay. Okay.” He rasped, bringing his forehead to rest against Adrian’s and lidded his eyes. The happiness that ate him was everything that he had been waiting for.

 

* * *

 

Lowering Lenz to the floor, Sehun fell to his knees with his mouth gaping at Vance’s lifeless body on the carpeted floor. “Va…” he was not aware of the tears until they blinded him.

Kai let out a loud sigh and lowered to squat beside him. “Don’t cry over him, Sehun. He found his own fate.” He cupped Sehun’s shoulder with his bloody hand that was holding Vance’s heart only a moment ago. Sehun nodded absently. He did not want Vance to die like this, no. But he felt like he was finally liberated. Like he was finally able to breathe again. He let Kai pull him back to his feet and usher him all the way out of the manor until they were standing near the fountain. Sehun sank to his knees again and washed the blood off his hands with the water from the fountain. Kai had been right. After he left in the morning, he returned to Sehun’s room again only to ask Sehun to stay for a little longer. Kai had expected Vance to spill his intentions out. But even he had not foreseen the cruelty Vance harboured all along. And neither did Sehun expect to hear all the things Vance had done to him over the years. He looked to Kai who was calming Lenz down. Who was the puppet master now? It had all been Kai’s plan this time. He was the one who convinced Sehun to do his bidding by hiding and listening to he will milk out of Vance this morning. He was the one who asked Sehun to ask Vance to free him of his sire bond. And ultimately, he was the one to end Vance’s life. Was it all a coincidence or had Kai planned Vance’s demise all along? Whatever it was, Sehun had not readied himself for anything that had happened today. Especially not to find out that he was compelled to believe that he loved Jongin all this while. Was anything he felt towards Jongin real? But one thing became apparent today. He could love anyone in this world, but he could only fall in love with this one man.

He dropped to sit on the flagstones before Kai walked over and flumped beside him while Lenz slapped the water in the fountain. “Now what?” Sehun asked.

Kai looked ahead at the manor and sighed. “I guess we all go home. You’re rightfully the Count now.”

“No. I forsook that right when Vance freed me. I suppose it’s Adrian’s right now.”

Kai nodded, biting his lip. “And he can change Jongin into a hybrid, too.”

Sehun did not reply immediately. “What’s happening between Jongin and Adrian?”

“I think Jongin should be the one to explain that. And… I should be the one to tell you that… I love you, Sehun.” he hung his head. “But now you’ll never regain your memories of me.”

Sehun snaked a hand over the back of Kai’s neck and lightly gripped his hair. Kai glanced up at him tiredly. “I don’t need those memories, Kai. We can make new ones. We… can start over. Just like we’ve met only yesterday.”

Kai smiled at that. “I didn’t know you screw boys you met only yesterday.”

“I don’t. But I make exceptions for bad boys.” He smirked despite the fatigue.

Kai’s smile faltered and he stared at him. Then he aggressively pulled Sehun into a kiss. Sehun did not fight it as his hand fisted Kai’s hair and he let himself sink into every bit of the tired and lazy, but passionate kiss. “Start over?” he gasped upon Sehun’s lips.

When Sehun had nodded, Kai pulled him into an embrace.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be an epilogue! Thank you so much for reading, commenting and leaving kudos! Do check out my new story, EverScarlet (archiveofourown.org/works/5529785)


	16. Epilogue

Upon setting his foot into this small, once insignificant town of little or absolutely no adventure in store, he had become someone he would allow himself to love. He had come across not one but two men who loved him for who he was. And Sehun wished all the happiness there was for the both of them for that he had found happiness in the man he called home. Life as he knew it had ended. It was a new beginning with a new year in the prospect. Unimaginable encounters had supervened in the course of a few years. Ups and downs. Laughter and tears. Love and hate. Hellos and goodbyes. Kisses and blood. Happenings and heartaches.

Lenz stuck his tongue out to catch a snowflake, fully cocooned in clothes to keep him warm in the bitter cold of the morning. He carelessly ran across the porch, trying to feel the light snow on his tongue. He came to a halt when a snowflake landed on his red nose and he scowled before vigorously shaking his head and looked to Kai. He flashed a toothy smile before leaping down the steps of the veranda. Sehun hid his own smile that began to form on his lips as he crossed his arms over his chest with his back leaned against his car.

“What are you grinning for?” Kai asked, smirking himself and Sehun looked up at him before shrugging. He paused for a moment to take in Kai’s ravening dark eyes, finding himself in them. Kai’s full lips were close to red in this sunless morning and the almost invisible thin stubble lined his jaw urged Sehun’s own lips to kiss along it.

“I never thought I’d be enjoying the sight of a Werewolf baby playing under the snow.” He muttered, fighting the itch to taste those ripened lips in this cold.

Kai scoffed. “I never thought I’d be standing here enjoying the very sigh with a Vampire by my side.”

Pursing his smiling lips, Sehun extended a hand and slid it into Kai’s palm. Kai reflexively laced their fingers and lowered his head, biting his lower lip. Sehun had not known much about Kai yet, but even holding his hand made him feel alive and surprisingly comfortable and safe. He could go on like this for the rest of this eternal life, knowing that so long he was with Kai, he was safe. From the minute he had passed the ‘Welcome to Jackson’ signboard with Kai a couple of days back, he knew he was not going anywhere for a while. He was tired of running and he knew Kai had missed home, too. Perhaps, it was time for them to settle in a place where they could now call home.

For some odd reason, Sehun could not be mad at Jongin for how he felt towards Adrian. And he could not be sorry for how he felt towards Kai. Why? Because it felt right. They were with the men they belonged with. Nothing seemed wrong anymore. His love for Jongin would never extinguish. But his love for Kai had the potential of conquering all the love Sehun had ever felt and given. He met Kai’s gaze with a sort of tacit promise. His hand tightened around Kai’s as his heart swelled. A new beginning indeed.

Kai withdrew his hand when Adrian walked out the door with Jongin dragging the luggage behind. Sehun wished he could somehow repair the relationship between Kai and Jongin which seemed far too damaged to be mended. Jongin had broken down when he saw Kai two days back, but he, just as Kai, did not seem to have forgiven Kai or himself. Sighing, Sehun smiled at Kai as if to encourage him to go and talk to his brother but Kai did not budge. Instead, he stood there hard-headed as ever.

Adrian pulled the luggage away from Jongin and tousled Lenz’s hair before loading his car with the bags. When he turned to Sehun and Kai, he passed them a cordial smile.

Sehun stepped forward first before Kai followed suit. He held his hand out to Adrian but instead of taking it, Adrian pulled him into a rough hug. For a moment, Sehun winced, crushed in the powerful arms of the bigger man. “He needs you, Sehun. More than you think. This idiot will be as lost as a strayed pup without you.” Adrian sighed, drawing back from the embrace. Kai snorted before sniggering.

“You flatter me, Adrian.” He clasped hands with Adrian first before yanking him into a boyish embrace. With just the bump of their shoulders, they pulled away from one another. “Or is it Count Adrian now?”

“Now who’s flattering the other?” he glanced to Jongin who was fastening the zip of Lenz’s jacket before he pulled Lenz’s small hands to his lips and the child giggled when Jongin blew on them. Sehun was surprised to see how fast Lenz had been able to warm up to Jongin but he always seemed too sceptical when it came to Kai.

“Let’s not get those tiny paws cold, shall we?” Jongin grinned at the child before sweeping him into his arm. Lenz clung onto Jongin’s neck with an arm while he sucked on the thumb on the other while Jongin carried him down the veranda. When he stopped beside Adrian, Sehun forced himself to not to look away. He would admit that seeing them as an almost family sparked a speck of jealousy within him. Who knew? Maybe the next time he would be able to see them, Jongin and Adrian might as well be married and Lenz would legally be their child. Jongin painfully met Sehun’s glance and let out a heavy breath. “I’ll see you when I see you again, Sehun.”

Sehun nodded and stroked the back of Lenz’s head before stepping back. Jongin’s eyes darted to Kai who had his jaw clenched. But then he stepped forward and clasped a side of Jongin’s head before brushing Jongin’s cheekbone with his thumb. For an instant, Jongin seemed taken aback with blood colouring his cheeks. Kai quickly dropped his hand from his face and cleared his throat. “You don’t have to leave right away.” Kai murmured.

“No. I have to.” Jongin replied with a faint smile etched on his lips. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry, too.”

With a bow of his head Jongin turned to Adrian who pressed a hand to the small of his back. “Ready?” he asked, smiling down at Jongin.

“As ever.”

Sehun and Kai both stepped back when they had gotten into Adrian’s car. Adrian kept his side of the door opened with one of his long legs still resting out on the gravelled driveway. “I don’t want be the Count or whatever, Kai. If you—”

“No.” Kai cut him off and curled a hand around Sehun’s elbow. “I think I have plenty already. I can’t be that greedy.”

Not for the first time, Sehun saw Kai as the most handsome man he had ever laid his eyes upon. And he loved this man unconditionally.

Adrian nodded as if he understood. “All right.”

“Bon voyage.” Kai smirked and retreated a couple of steps as Adrian slammed the door shut with a smirk of his own. Sehun noticed Adrian holding Jongin’s hand for a brief moment before he shifted the gear and steered the car out of there. Heaving a long sigh, Kai faced Sehun. “Did you talk to Chanyeol?”

“He doesn’t know about Vance. But he’s fine. Something tells me he’s going to spend an awful lot of time researching about supernatural beings.” Well, at least he’d found his adventure. “He might also leave Jackson, he said.”

Kai shrugged and started for the car. “If he needs to be shut up, let me know.”

“Don’t worry about it. He’s a friend before anything else.”

“You steer or shall I?”

Sehun folded his arms on top of the car and burrowed his chin between them, beaming at Kai. “I’ll drive if you’ll bring me out for dinner tonight?”

“Hm. Wild boars or mountain moose? Wait, I know. Let’s strangle some white-tailed deer for its blood.”

Sehun cringed at Kai’s banter. “Have you always been this sort of jerk or…?”

“You ought to know that I kissed you in front of the entire school and your ex-boyfriend once. And I also pretended to be drunk just to grab your ass.”

“You’re lying.”

“I’m not. Get in.” he scoffed and slid into the driver’s seat as Sehun gaped aimlessly before climbing into the car.

“Where are we going now?”

Kai swallowed as he started the engine and glared straight ahead. “I should at least let my parents know that I’m back, shouldn’t I?”

Sehun did not disagree but he was not sure it was the best idea either. Whatever it was, he was going to stick by Kai’s side even if he had to fight a pack of Werewolves alongside Kai. “Do you think they will accept… you?”

“I’m still their son. But I am an abomination.”

Sehun cupped Kai’s cheek and pulled his face to meet his eyes. “You’re a fucking hot abomination. You’re… my abomination.”

Kai laughed at that. “Yeah, I could say the same about you.”

That instant, Sehun’s world stopped around him with Kai’s lips moving in and against his as Kai’s hand lingered on his thigh. He was never going to get used to Kai’s aggressively soothing kisses.

 

 

 

Kai’s agitation was obvious in his mien as he exited the vehicle. “Kai, it’s going to be okay.” Sehun assured him, but only half-assured himself.

“I’m not sure I’m their favoured son.” He groaned as he started towards the wooden veranda of the house that was isolated in this winter woods.

“What makes you say that?” Sehun frowned.

“Well for starters, I’m a Vampire slash Werewolf. Plus, I almost had the entire pack in danger the last time I was here.” He sighed exasperatedly and stopped on the steps of the veranda. “Maybe I shouldn’t have come back.”

“You’re not a coward to run away.”

“Yeah?” Kai scoffed. “Want a bet?”

“Kai.”

“Okay, okay.” He shook his hands and climbed up the steps. “If you see them running to get an axe or something, warn me.”

“Oh my God. I never knew you were such a baby when it comes to your momma and dada.”

“Shut up.” he took hold of Sehun’s hand as if he needed some kind of support. Sehun smiled at how nervous Kai was. “Well, at least I’ve stopped smoking. That ought to make my mother happy, right?”

Sehun smashed his lips onto Kai’s and kissed him for a short moment before smiling against his mouth. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you from your mommy.”

Kai gave him a shove on the chest before knocking on the door. He froze altogether when the door sprung open. Jongin and his mother stood with her robe clinging to her shoulders and her eyes bulged out upon meeting her son’s cocky grin. “K… Kai…” she let out.

“Mom.” He pulled his hand free from Sehun before holding his arms open. His mother stepped out with her jaw dropped to the floor and eyes ballooned. “I’m back.”

“You’re… y-you’re…” she panted as if she had seen a ghost. Then it was her hand that had greeted Kai with a brutal slap on the face. “You’re back?!”

“Ow!” Kai squawked, holding a side of his face, although Sehun was one hundred per cent sure it could not have hurt him. “What the hell, mom?!”

“How could you!” she ran into his arms and buried her crying face into his chest.

Wrapping his arms around her shoulders, Kai nuzzled his nose into her hair. “I’m sorry.”

Sehun thought about leaving them alone, but then Kai stretched an arm to him and grabbed his hand. Sehun almost curled his hand around Kai’s before his nose stung with the numerous blended pungent scents which he had gotten very used to in the past couple of years of bedding Jongin. He pulled his hand back and spun around only to meet the men that began to emerge out the woods, all wending their way toward the house. Kai released his mother to turn around and when he acknowledged the Werewolves, the latter stopped in their tracks, all gawking at Kai with a familiar expression.

“Kai?” one of them called out in disbelief. The man looked ridiculously familiar, but Sehun could place him right in his memories. They were all shirtless and Sehun could only guess that they had been on their rounds in the morning.

A scowl crossed Kai’s eyebrows. “I don’t want trouble with any of you. And I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t want any trouble with me either. Please leave.”

“What are you talking about? We have missed you!” the man yapped before bolting over to Kai and drew him into a ferocious but brotherly hug. He turned to the rest of the men and loudly announced, “Our Alpha has returned to us!”

Kai’s jaw fell slacking. “Karm, I’m not—”

“We know, Kai. Most of us were there when it happened, remember? You’re a hybrid. But all of us sensed it the minute you stepped onto this land. You are our Alpha. Whether you’re half leech…. Vampire, or not you are our pack.”

Kai blinked blankly before he tossed Sehun a look. He could see the sparks in Kai’s eyes as if all his wildest dreams had come true right before his eyes. All that Sehun could muster was another smile of assurance. There. This new beginning. This new life. This new chapter of life. Everything was falling into the right place.

Kai nodded as the corners of his lips quirked into a full-fledged smile. “All right.” He kept his eyes on Sehun as he spoke. His gaze clearly spelled out what he was intending to say. _I love you._

An eternity to be spent with this one man. No regrets. No grievances.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THAT'S A WRAP, EVERYONE! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING, AND FOR TAKING THE TIME TO COMMENT AND LEAVE KUDOS!


	17. BONUS CHAPTER/PRELUDE TO PART 3

The subtlety of the night upraised the thin hairs lining the back of his neck as he ascended the glass stairs. His footsteps were light and noiseless, just as the warm summer night outside. A soft smirk played on Sehun’s eager lips while his blood readily stirred in the nether parts of his body. The vigorous thrum of water drops bulleting the tiles reverberated in the corner of his head, filling his ears with its invitation. Drawing his fingertips along the top of the stairs’ railing, Sehun tried to carry himself upstairs as stealthily as his feet could take him. Even the sound of the shower running in his room fired the hungry fervour and lust within him. Without making any noise, he slid into his bedroom and found a trail of worn clothes on the floor, leading to the bathroom.

Licking his lips, he picked up the shirt that was seeping with Kai’s desirable wolfish scent and orgasmic sweat that settled on Sehun’s body immediately like the scent had recognized Sehun’s oceanic eau de toilette on his skin. Smiling at the thought of Kai’s skin against his own, he lowered the shirt to the bed. He wondered what Kai had been doing the entire day while he was away. Pulling his own clothes off, Sehun shed them to the floor. He glanced over to the full-length mirror and even in the dark room—which was only brightened by the dim light that emitted from the slit under the door of the bathroom—his naked body gleamed with desire to have Kai’s hands touch it, inch every line and plane on his crème white body with his tongue. Running his slender fingers through his ivory blonde hair while dragging his other hand down his abs, he smirked at his own hardening member. Well, did he have a pleasant surprise for Kai…

After pulling on Kai’s sweat-doused shirt, Sehun proceeded to the bathroom with the shirt dangling on his shoulders, unbuttoned and clinging onto his skin like Kai’s own caress. Sliding the door open, he leaned his shoulder against the doorframe and caught his lower lip between his teeth, trying to suppress his mischievous smile as his eyes fell on Kai’s caramel-tanned, and smooth back. Beads of water trickled down the sharp shoulder blades and the cleft of his back, adorning his breathtakingly flawless skin. When Kai lifted his arms, running his hands through his drenched hair before facing up to the showerhead to let the water run down the features of his face, Sehun felt himself twitch down below. He licked his lips and swallowed, taking in the glorious sight before his eyes, staring at Kai’s flexed biceps. Then he lowered his arms to his sides and only turned his face a little as if glancing at his own shoulder. “Are you planning to just stand there and ogle a naked man showering for the rest of the night?” he asked before he looked over his shoulder and smirked at Sehun. His smirk quickly faltered as his eyes travelled down Sehun’s very much naked body.

“Can I join you?” Sehun’s question was unnecessary, but the way he had whispered it certainly triggered the same amount of lust within Kai for that his lips parted and eyes fell droopy, staring at Sehun’s bared chest and abs.

“Sure. But…” Kai turned around and Sehun felt himself shudder. It had been 13 years, and he was never going to get used to seeing Kai’s naked bronze body, let alone in the shower. “I can’t promise you that you’ll get any less dirty than you are right now.”

“I can live with that.” Smiling smugly, Sehun entered the shower cubicle—with Kai’s shirt still sagging by his shoulders. A side of him and the shirt immediately soaked the water from the showerhead as he stopped with a feet distancing their eager bodies. No matter how many times he had touched this body, it felt like the first time. The hunger, the thirst, the fire, the fume. Sehun wanted every inch of Kai’s body against his own, filling him with forbidden ecstasy and exultation. He acknowledged the smirk on Kai’s glistening lips with a smirk of his own. “Too bad you’ve already showered.” He faked a sigh as he raised a palm to Kai’s chest before slowing shifting to let the warm water drench his entire body, uncomfortably gluing the wet shirt to the sides and back of his body. “Such a waste.” He drew his palm up Kai’s toned chest and curled it around the back of his neck.

Kai grabbed the sides of his waist and slammed him against the glass wall of the shower cubicle before lifting one of Sehun’s legs and pressed Sehun’s thigh to his hip. His rough hand clutched the soft underside of Sehun’s thigh. “Well, unless you want to be fucked in the bathtub, stop teasing and tell me what you want.” His forthcoming attitude was another thing that Sehun would never get used to.

Draping his arms over Kai’s shoulders, Sehun let their pulsating cocks brush together. “Remember how you made me scream two nights back? Do it again.” He whispered against Kai’s pinked lips and noticed Kai clench his jaw. The man had zero self-control when it came to Sehun. And the latter certainly had nothing to complain over it.

Their lips crashed in a mess of wetness and an insane bestial appetite for sex. Sehun entangled his fingers in the wet strands of Kai’s hair and suckled his lower lip, drawing an animalistic moan out of Kai. With water dribbling down between their mouths, Kai kissed him with a vigour that Sehun had never experienced prior to this. His warm tongue glided into Sehun’s mouth, tasting every part of the hot cavern before it swirled around Sehun’s own tongue. Kai’s hand kneaded the tender flesh of Sehun’s thigh and pulled it further to grope Sehun’s ass. Then out of the sudden, he dropped Sehun’s leg and spun him around before pressing Sehun’s front to the glass. Wrapping his arms around Sehun’s waist, Kai dragged his hand down Sehun’s abs before he fisted his cock. “Want me to make you wetter, baby?” he exhaled, pressing his lips to Sehun’s cheek as his thick cock was pressed into the cleft of Sehun’s ass. Sucking in a gasp, Sehun tilted his head back on Kai’s shoulder and allowed his mouth to revel into a sloppy moist kiss as Kai thumbed the slit on his cockhead. His back burned against Kai’s chest through the soaked fabric of his shirt.

An insuppressible moan escaped Sehun’s throat when Kai began to pepper the side of his neck with dirty kisses, lining the protruding vein of his neck with the tip of his tongue. He slowly perked his ass back and pressed harder against the underside of Kai’s cock. “Kai.” He let out as Kai latched his hands on Sehun’s hips.

“That’s it.” He traced Sehun’s earlobe with his tongue before sucking on it. “Scream my name.” with a furious tug at Sehun’s hips, he started to grind his cock in Sehun’s ass cleft, riding the length up and down, rubbing the foreskin on the underside of his cock against Sehun’s hole, creating a stunning friction which almost Sehun almost reeled for. He grabbed onto Kai’s hair at the back of his head as Kai rubbed his cock between his ass cheeks.

“Fuck!” Sehun gasped and pressed his forehead to the glass wall when Kai pulled back a little to slide a wet finger into him.

“You like that? Should I finger you until you come?” he kissed Sehun’s shoulder blade through the doused shirt. A jolt was sent down Sehun’s spine. He had never heard Kai talk this dirty before. Reaching his hand back, he grabbed onto Kai’s ass when Kai pulled his middle finger out of him before sucking on it. Sehun kept his head turned halfway around to watch Kai’s lips wrapped around the finger, licking and sucking it. He slid it back into Sehun and fingered him, hard and mercilessly. Groaning, Sehun pumped his cock with one hand while the other was extended backwards to stroke Kai’s thick and arching cock. He withdrew his finger out of him again and this time, he brushed the finger along Sehun’s lips before Sehun curled his tongue around it. Kai dragged his lips along Sehun’s neck as Sehun smeared the finger with his saliva. “Have I told you how crazy you drive me?” he panted against Sehun’s nape before his finger glided back in. It was inviting this time, coaxing pleasurable moans out of Sehun.

“Kai…” he heaved when Kai pressed his hand onto Sehun’s abs, splaying his fingers wide as if to keep Sehun in place as his finger massaged the soft insides of him.

“I want to kiss you everywhere. Every single corner of your body.” Kai’s whisper grazed Sehun’s cheek as he fingered him faster. He abruptly dropped to his knees behind Sehun and stretched his ass cheeks, earning a monstrous groan from Sehun. Kai slid his hand between Sehun’s thighs and cupped his balls before pressing his thumb on Sehun’s puckered hole. “Isn’t here where you love my kisses most, Sehun?” he gently pressed his lips on Sehun’s projecting tailbone.

“Ah, fuck. Kai… Don’t…” he grabbed a handful of Kai’s hair as Kai dragged his tongue down Sehun’s ass cleft along with the water droplets. He lightly brushed the tip of his finger on the creased rim of Sehun’s fingered opening before Kai stroked it with his lips. “Ugh… God…” he knew if he leaned any harder against the glass wall, it would shatter. But Kai’s tongue circling the pushed out hole before it slid in did not help much. Sehun gritted his teeth and pushed his ass out with Kai’s tongue fucking his hole. “F-fuck. Deeper…” He felt Kai’s tongue breach in deeper.

When he pulled his tongue out, he licked the hole again repeatedly before sucking on it. He then kissed all over Sehun’s ass while kneading Sehun’s tight balls. Turning him around, he paused to look up at Sehun before a mocking smile stretched his dirty lips. “You look wrecked already.”

“Yeah?” Sehun let out with his mouth as dry as a sandpaper. “What? You’re… eager on servicing me tonight?”

Kai licked his lips and pressed a kiss on Sehun’s navel. “If that’s what you want to call it.” He traced the thin line of hair with sloppy kisses before his lips brushed the base of Sehun’s cock. His hand was between Sehun’s thighs again, his fingers rubbing Sehun’s opening while his mouth kissed along Sehun’s hard shaft. Sehun threw his head back against the glass and let out a ferocious moan when Kai tongued the slit of his cockhead just as he pushed in two fingers into him at the same time. Spreading his legs, Sehun held onto Kai’s head as Kai sank in.

“Fuck, Kai!” he grunted as Kai took all of him in. His hot tongue swirled around his cock as his fingers mercilessly fingered him from under with the hilt of Kai’s palm slamming into his balls. It took him so much effort to hold himself back from coming into Kai’s mouth this soon. He wanted to feel Kai’s mouth suck him in. He wanted to feel the tip of his cock slam into the back of Kai’s throat. But Kai’s fingers curling and brushing around sensitive nerves made it almost impossible for Sehun to not to reach his climax. Kai pulled back before sucking Sehun’s balls into his mouth. “Hump me.” Sehun gasped and hastily grabbed the sides of Kai’s head before hauling him up to kiss him full on mouth. Kai kept his hand between Sehun’s legs as the tips of his fingers kept fucking him.

“Aren’t you thirsty tonight?” Kai smirked against his lips and shoved Sehun to face the glass before he stretched Sehun’s ass apart. Sehun groaned out Kai’s name when he felt the head of Kai’s leaking cock stroke his hole. The subtle noise that the back of Kai’s throat made drove Sehun insane for a moment as Kai’s cockhead was rubbed on his wrinkled opening. “You like that, baby? My cock teasing your pink tight hole?” he moaned against Sehun’s ear before he yanked Sehun’s chin to kiss him, all tongue and teeth. Sehun could not help but enjoy every dirty word that Kai whispered into his ear. He then pressed his length along Sehun’s ass cleft and gripped onto Sehun’s hips. “Want to ride my cock, babe?”

“Shit. Ah…” Sehun pinned his palms onto the steamed glass wall, bending forward as Kai began to grind his cock up his ass. He was not used to Kai talking this dirty, but he now wished Kai did it every time they had sex. Kai pushed the shirt up Sehun’s back and licked along the cleft of the back before he turned Sehun around and hoisted him up. Clinging onto Kai’s neck, Sehun enveloped Kai’s waist with his legs as Kai humped him, slamming his cock and balls into Sehun’s own. The water slapped between their crotches, creating a smooth lubricated friction for their cocks and abs. Sweat mingled water beads rolled down Kai’s neck and chest as his hips crushed Sehun’s. Their lips met in a delirious frenzy, hungry for more, but with enough energy to keep this going for the entire night.

 

 

 

Kai smiled even with his eyes clenched and Sehun mirrored his gentle smile as he drew patterns on Kai’s chest with his fingertip. “You really like staring at naked men, don’t you?” Kai mumbled in his hoarse voice, tightening his arm around Sehun’s shoulders. Gnawing on his lip, Sehun slid his knee between Kai’s legs under the duvet before kissing the corner of Kai’s lips.

“Only this one naked man the most.”

Kai chortled and snorted when Sehun dragged his lips along his jawline. “You’re seducing me even after I’ve fucked you like five times last night alone? You must have no love for your hips.”

“I would if they didn’t heal so fast.” Sehun sighed. “Tell me something.” He pushed himself up a little and draped his arm over Kai’s chest.

“Oh no. Is this going to get me into trouble?”

Sehun licked Kai’s cheekbone and caught Kai’s lower lip between his teeth before deliberately pulling at it. “That depends on your answer.”

“Should I be honest or not?”

“Don’t be an asshole. And… tell me which part of my body do you love the most?”

“Shit.” Kai let out. “Hmm… Do you really have to ask me this question? You already know the answer.” His hand slid back and gave Sehun’s ass a harsh squeeze.

“Damn you.” he slapped Kai’s hand off his butt.

“Okay, okay. All right. Were you expecting me to say your heart or eyes?”

“Yes?”

“Well, I love…” Kai’s playful smile died as his eyes became focused into Sehun’s gaze. He caressed Sehun’s cheek and cupped it before brushing his lips on Sehun’s. “I just… love _you_ , Sehun. All of you.”

Sehun pressed their foreheads together. “I… I lo—”

_Ding dong._

Kai groaned and Sehun joined him in his disappointment before he got off the bed. “Who the fuck is it this early?!” he lied back on the bed with his hand tucked under his head.

“Get up.” Sehun hurled Kai’s t-shirt onto his face before zipping his jeans. “Might be the…” he trailed off when the scent finally reached his nose. Kai perked up at once and bolted off the bed before quickly pulling his clothes on. He stopped to stare at Sehun for a moment before they both jolted downstairs at once. Sehun let Kai get the door, knowing that he would not be the one the wolves would have wanted to meet.

“What is it?!” Kai rasped when he was met with Karm’s blood-stained face.

“There was an ambush near the mountains.” Karm panted. “What were you doing that you cut our connection to you?!” he snapped and almost lurched to grab Kai’s shirt, but stopped when his eyes fell on Sehun. “You were fucking him. Of course.” he spat.

“Watch your fucking mouth, Karm.” He shoved Karm back by the chest. “What the fuck happened?!”

“I don’t know! Some of us were even shot with bullets! Laced with Wolfsbane! We tried to track a scent but caught none! You could have even with Wolfsbane but you weren’t there because you were rutting this damned bloodsucking bitch!”

That earned Karm a fair blow to the side of his face by Kai’s fist. Thirteen years and Sehun was still not welcomed by any of the Werewolves, except Kai’s parents. “If you even dare to say another ill word about him, I won’t even hesitate to make you pay for it!”

“Kai, don’t. Pigs will always roll in mud no matter how many times you wash them.” Sehun pressed a hand to Kai’s chest to hold him back. “What ambush? Are you certain that they… that it was a Vampire?”

“Could have been you, right? Since you’re the only leech in town now.” Karm hissed and Kai clenched his jaw.

“He was with me the entire night.” Kai retorted.

“Of course.” he sneered, rolling his eyes. “We need you right now. Are you going to come or…”

“Go. I’ll be there in a moment.” He turned to Sehun. “Do you… have any idea who it could be?”

Sehun stared at Kai as if he had just accused him. “What?”

“No. I mean… do you know any Vampire who could be a threat to us?”

Sehun shook his head.

“Alright.” He rubbed his temples and began to tread on Karm’s footsteps.

“Kai, I’m coming.” Sehun hurried after him and Kai did not protest as expected. He never was the one to treat Sehun as a fragile little thing. He knew that Sehun was strong and Sehun loved him for that.

 

 

* * *

 

The salmon pink ribbons that streaked the sombre deep steel-blue sky were both striking and alarming roofing the thick blanket of fog that protected the ground and hovering above the ocean and sand which were only meters away. Another day had risen and the eternity remained. The mug remained cold in his hand, filled with blood that he had not even tasted. Today will be the day that everything could either become perfect or crumble altogether. “Good morning.” He heard Adrian’s soft greet, but he didn’t avert his gaze from the kitchen window which showcased the mysterious dawn and sunrise of the island they now called home. “What’s the matter?” he felt Adrian’s whisper on the side of his neck as his husband curled his arms around his body, pressing his chest against Jongin’s back.

“He might hate us forever.” Jongin muttered under his breath, lowering his eyes to the blood that sat idle in the mug. He could almost hear Adrian’s frown in his sigh. He pulled back and turned Jongin around to face him. Holding his shoulders, Adrian leaned in and brushed his lips on his forehead.

“He’s our son. He won’t hate us.”

 _He’s your son. He won’t hate you._ Jongin frowned at his own thought and settled the mug onto the sink counter. “He grew up having a tough impression on me, Adrian.”

“He loves you, Jongin.” Adrian scowled, cupping Jongin’s face. “He doesn’t see us any different.”

Jongin really wanted to believe that. He truly did. But he would never forget the day Lenz asked who his real father between them was. _Real_ father. He always seemed to have loved both Jongin and Adrian equally, but in spite of everything, Jongin was the outsider in his life. Jongin was the reason his father was never really in love with his mother. And now, they were about to tell Lenz the truth about everything. Everything. As much as Jongin wished Lenz had known, he and Adrian wanted Lenz to grow up in a normal environment. But now that Lenz was close to coming of age, he ought to know that he was indeed a Werewolf and his fathers were… hybrids.

Jongin closed his eyes for a moment and leaned into Adrian’s chest. Keeping all these secrets from their own son had worn him out in ways that even the months when Adrian had kept him locked in a room full of Wolfsbane and Vervain when he turned Jongin into a hybrid had not. “I don’t want him to hate me, Adrian.”

“Jesus Christ.” Adrian pulled back and ran his fingers through Jongin’s hair before he pressed their lips together. “This is Lenz we’re talking about, Jongin. Have a little faith in him. I’m sure you didn’t take it well when your parents told you about our descent either.”

“And the fact that we’re hybrids? How is any Werewolf going to accept that fact?”

“He hasn’t come to that point. So don’t worry.”

“He’s turning 16 today, Adrian. It’s only a matter—of what—weeks before he starts with the transfiguration?”

“Shh.” He hushed Jongin and spun around to smile at Lenz who walked into the kitchen with his messenger bag slinging on his shoulder. Jongin could not help but manage a smile himself upon meeting Lenz’s shocked gaze.

“Why are you guys looming in the kitchen so early in the morning?!” he gasped and Jongin quickly drained his mug into the sink before rinsing it.

“What are _you_ doing up this early?” Adrian inquired, taking his seat on the stool at the kitchen counter.

Lenz rubbed the back of his neck, stuttering a little, licking his lips. “I’m… goin’ to school.”

“It’s 5:30, Lenz.” Adrian heaved a sigh and he grabbed an apple from the basket.

“Yeah. Well.” He snickered nervously. “I could use some extra revisions.”

“Uh huh.” His father smirked as Jongin hung his head, trying to hide his own grin. “So, tell me. Who is she?”

That instant, Lenz helplessly shot a glance to Jongin with a pained expression etched on his face. Jongin must admit. He had grown up to be a fairly handsome boy, who will only be revamped and transformed into an even more handsome boy by the end of this year upon coming of age according to Werewolves’ age. His sported his burnt sienna hair in a closely cropped style with his long bangs always gelled and spiked to a side which made him only even more desirable for girls his age. High cheekbones, sharp jawline, rosy pink lips. Even at this age, he stood almost as tall as Adrian and he definitely inherited his father’s broad shoulders.

“She’s no one, dad. ‘Cause she doesn’t _exist_.” Lenz said at last, although with a grim expression as he snatched the apple from Adrian’s hand before taking a bite.

“Bring her over. It’ll be nice to meet your friends once in a while.” Jongin suggested and Lenz sighed.

“Not you too.” He frowned, faking a pout. “You two have obviously grown into an old couple with a relationship almost as interesting as a wet cardboard, that’s why you’re bothering me. Why not go for a vacation or something?” he shrugged, taking another mouthful bite of the apple.

Adrian rose from his seat to pour some coffee into Lenz’s ‘I AM A CHAMPION’ mug before he handed it over to his son who accepted it with a grateful smile. “Why? So that you can have your girlfriend over? You should just say so. We can learn to stay quiet while you doing your… stuff so long you promise to stay quiet as well.” The way he smirked had always been Jongin’s greatest weakness. He looked over to Lenz who groaned despite himself after taking a sip of the coffee.

“Dad. I don’t. Have. A girlfriend.” Lenz spat, although in a playful manner before he walked around the counter to hand the mug to Jongin. “But you two certainly could use some getaway.”

“Not going to happen.” Jongin said decidedly.

“I’m not exactly a virgin daughter you need to protect 24/7, dad.” Lenz scoffed and eyed Jongin from top to bottom. “On second thought, nope. Even if I did have a girlfriend, I will never bring her over to meet you two.”

“Why not?” Adrian chuckled as if he already knew the answer.

“You guys are obvious DILFS.” Lenz blurted out and stuffed his bag with another apple. “I wouldn’t want my girlfriend to be reeling for you. No offence.”

“None taken.” Jongin muttered, shooting Adrian a mischievous smirk.

“Be home early.” Adrian said after a while.

“Why?” Lenz asked, but quickly said, “Okay. Don’t make me look stupid on my sixteenth birthday, dad.” He frowned again and Jongin tousled his hair.

“We wouldn’t dare.” Jongin laughed before Lenz shot him a toothy grin before he leapt over the kitchen counter to get to the other side.

“Bye.” He waved without sparing them another glance and hurried toward the door.

Adrian let out a heavy sigh, shaking his head. “Hormones.”

“And I’m still full of ‘em.” Jongin scoffed, but his humour died at once when the pungent metallic stench surrounded them, stinging his nose. Fresh, cold and alive. “Adrian.” He rasped and without even stalling a second, Adrian bolted after Lenz before Jongin followed.

Lenz had just opened the door when Adrian grabbed his arm and yanked him away before the bullets plunged into Adrian’s chest. Adrian’s boot came up to the shooter’s chest and he stomped him back before he bared his fangs, lurching forward. That was when the bullet plunged into his forehead. “Dad!” Lenz’s scream was muffled by the noise of the banging gun as Adrian collapsed onto the floor with a loud thud. Jongin shoved Lenz aside and stormed after the shooter but was brought to a stop when a bullet ran straight through his heart before another pierced his leg, bringing him down to his knees.

The silhouette emerged out of the darkness of the dawn. Jongin was paralyzed, his heart dousing in the venom of the bullet. The bullets were laced with Wolfsbane and Vervain. Jongin felt the venoms spread through his blood in his veins as his head swam in a blurry haze. His throat tightened and he knew he was going to black out any moment now. The shadow-like figure loomed before him and Jongin could not discern even the outline of the man. The next thing he knew was a fist punching through his ribs, snapping every last one of it that was in the way before it came around Jongin’s heart. His vision blackened, but the scent that the shooter reeked off clearly suggested that he was both a Werewolf and a Vampire. A hybrid.

“Now which one of you is the Count?” the voice sounded too soothing to corroborate to his repulsive actions. Jongin blinked his teary eyes and clutched the guy’s neck.

Then just when his heart was almost crushed in his fist, Lenz pounced him before shoving him away. Jongin gasped when his heart was released before he heard a growl. He pushed himself up and stood next to his son who stood his ground with his eyes turning black with rims of gold, his Werewolf teeth flashed and ready for a fight. Jongin looked up at the shooter who smugly smiled them. He was a thin built boy who sported a golden-red hair that reached down to his shoulders, and looked close to Jongin’s age. The silver gun was held steadily in his hand. Lenz lurched forward but Jongin held him back. It was going to be even more impossible to explain things calmly to Lenz now. He had been triggered. “Who are you?” he asked in a low growl.

“Are you seriously going to do an ice-breaking session?!” Lenz snarled, pulling his arm away. “He just killed—”

“Calm down, Lenz!” Jongin snapped and jolted forward to the other hybrid before grabbing the boy’s neck and tore the gun away from him. “Who the fuck are you?” he demanded through his grit teeth.

The notorious smirk on the boy’s lips stretched into a full smile. “The first ever hybrid’s son.” He spat and Jongin plunged back when the boy’s foot struck his abdomen. Straightening his coat, he looked to Lenz and laughed. “Your lapdog wants to bite me, I see.”

“Right, that’s it!” Lenz advanced for his neck again but Jongin shoved him back, putting himself between the boys. He knew that Lenz stood no chance against a hybrid.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t rip your head off right now.”

“Because he’s coming for you. And you’re far weaker than I thought you’d be.” The boy’s beautiful lips curled into a mocking grin.

“Who’s coming for us?” Jongin asked, glancing over to Adrian’s dead body on the floor, hoping that he would come back to life soon.

“My father.” The boy announced proudly. “And when he does, he _will_ kill every last one of the Vampires Vance created, including your beast of a boyfriend here and sadly, I don’t think he’ll spare your… dog.” He scoffed, sneering at Lenz who went for him again before Jongin pushed him back for one last time.

Lenz blinked his eyes out of the sudden and stared down at his palms. “Lenz, calm down.”

“I can’t.” he panted with his chest heaving. Jongin threw the hybrid boy a scowl before wrapping an arm around Lenz’s shoulders. The bullet still remained deep in his heart, still spreading the venom. Jongin hoped Adrian would come back to live before he went out.

“Try to breathe. Calm the anger. Suppress the dominating spirit.” He told Lenz breathlessly.

Lenz looked to Adrian with his eyes sheening with fear and tears. “Dad…”

“He’ll be fine. I promise.”

“Fine?! He’s dead!”

Jongin collapsed to one of his knees, clutching his chest. “Lenz…” That was when Adrian struck up and without even hesitating for a second, went straight for the hybrid boy’s throat. “No, Adrian, wait!”

“What the fuck?!” Lenz gasped, retrieving a couple of steps back as Adrian threatened the boy with his fangs and merciless growl. The boy—in return—smiled back at Adrian even with his neck being clawed at. But Adrian didn’t pull his head off. Instead, he must have noticed that the boy was not any younger than his own son.

“I’m not here to kill you.” the boy said when his smirk had faltered. “I’m here to _help_ you.”

“Fucking no kidding?!” Lenz shouted despite the shock. “You couldn’t have done that by saying hi?!”

“Adrian.” Jongin croaked and Adrian dropped his hand from the boy’s neck at once before he rushed to Jongin’s side. He lifted Jongin into his arms at once and jolted to the couch before laying him down.

“Lenz, get the knife from the kitchen!” he ordered. “Hey, hey. It’s gonna be okay. I’m gonna take that bullet out.” He must have guessed by the way Jongin was clutching his shirt by the heart. Adrian ripped the shirt apart. “Close your eyes. Fall asleep. It’s going to be all right.” Adrian compelled him with a steady voice and just like that Jongin slowly drifted into unconsciousness. The last thing he heard was Lenz yelping, “What are you doing?!”

 

_To be continued…_


	18. Skylar Sinclair

Everything made no sense and a lot of sense, all at once. His mind was a surging quandary, clouded with inscrutable confusion. While his mind was on the loop of perplexity, his body was trembling with a heat rush that he had never undergone before—his teeth almost clattering and hands shaking. Every muscle in his body felt like it was being pierced by thousands of glass shards. That was not the worst of it. He wanted to ask questions—profusion of them. But he couldn’t. Clenching and releasing his fists repeatedly, he tried to focus on his breathing in spite of his father who laid almost lifelessly on the couch with a thin blanket draped over his shirtless body. He wanted his hand, the very hand that had just passed his father the knife before he saw it mercilessly cutting through Jongin’s chest and knee, to stop trembling like a weak falling leaf. He kept his eyes on the glimmering silver gun on the coffee table, unable to look up at the blood-soused couch that his father was cocooned in. _So much blood._ The blood of one of the men Lenz loved the most in his life.

It was quiet, almost serene despite the strong stench of blood. The house had always been harbouring this metallic scent, but not once had it been this strong, and not once had Lenz suspected that it was blood. He was always convinced that it was the ventilation system of the house. But now it made sense. Actually, he felt like an idiot for believing every lie that his parents had thrown in his way. Well, how was he supposed to suspect that his parents were some supernatural creatures?! Although that would definitely explain the fact that neither Adrian nor Jongin had grown a year older. They had always remained the way Lenz remembered since he was a child. They never took any photographs and whenever Lenz had insisted, they had always been so reluctant. They were never easily tired, and when they were, it almost seemed like they were performing. Rather poorly. Now it made more sense as to why they were both so keen on having Lenz active in school, to keep him away from home as much as possible. They had made him join almost every sport in school, participate in almost every club. Lenz had always been distracted by his own life and had never paid much attention to his parents’. The day he had dared to inquire about his mother, he discovered that Jongin still had a family. But neither of his parents had been generous about the details. They had been keeping him in the darkness all this while.

His head pounded with all the sudden realization. A moment ago, he was close to becoming something like an animal. He was aware of the heat that gushed through him, the pain his chest held in. He wondered if he too was like his parents and for some odd reason, he cringed at the thought before completely scorning at it. His jaw tightened as his eyes pulled up to Jongin. His chest was healed without even a scar. The blood-infused water swirled in the basin on the floor with the blood-stained cloth hanging over its edge and the bullets resting on the bottom. He felt like an imbecile for even considering taking Jongin to a bloody hospital. And did he even need to contemplate the fact that Adrian had simply just come back to life after being shot in the head? Lenz closed his eyes momentarily, burying his face in his palms and drew out a long sigh. He froze for a moment when he heard footsteps. He looked up and saw no mobility in the living room. Blinking his eyes vacantly, he concentrated on the footsteps again. The sound seemed distant, but nearby as well. Near to his ears. Wincing at the odd sensation, he looked to the door that was still closed. The redhead had been away for almost half an hour now and Lenz really hoped he wouldn’t return, otherwise he was not sure how he was going to stop himself from murdering the guy—who smelled like honeysuckle and a really strong perfume that stung Lenz’s nose.

He averted his gaze back to Jongin at once when his father stirred under the blanket with a crumpled expression. “Dad?” he called hesitantly, but didn’t rise from the couch he was sitting in across the couch Jongin was lying in. Adrian stormed into the living room, pulling on a long-sleeve grey t-shirt over his head. He smelled of soap and shampoo as he zoomed past Lenz. The blood that was smeared on his forehead a moment ago was washed away, just as Jongin’s blood on his hands. Adrian dropped to one of his knees beside the couch and swept Jongin’s hair out of his eyes before stroking it back. Lenz licked his lips, staring down at his sweaty palms on his lap. He felt as if he needed to get out of this skin that was burning, torturing him. This skin suddenly felt like it wasn’t his.

“Lenz.”

He glanced up at his father with half-lidded tired eyes and rolled his hands back into a fist. “What’s happening to me?”

Adrian pushed himself up to his full height and walked over to his son. He did not seem as exhausted as Lenz was. Hell, he looked fit as ever. “I have to tell you something. A lot of things. And.” He lowered down to sit on the armrest, sighing. “I’m not sure how you’re going to take it.”

“Really?” Lenz scoffed humourlessly. “I just… saw you come back to life. I’m taking that pretty well, aren’t I?” No, he wasn’t. He wanted to scream, punch through a wall or something. But above all, he was praying that this was all just a nightmare and that he would wake up soon.

Adrian pinned him with a sorrowful look. “Lenz… I’m not sure it’s that simple.”

“What are you?”

His father’s face turned sour as if the question had offended him. “You’re in transition, Lenz. _What_ I am is not really important right now. What’s more important is that you know who _you_ are.”

Lenz’s frown deepened. “Am I… one of you? What exactly are you?!” he jolted up to his feet and for once, it felt amazing to be towering above his father. Adrian looked calm as always as he rubbed his temples.

“You’re a smart kid, Lenz. What do you think we are?”

He didn’t want to say, because it sounded utterly stupid and delusional. _God, please let me be dreaming._ “I don’t know.” He lied in a mutter.

“If you’re willing to sit down and listen to what I have to say—”

“No, I’m not, dad!” the heat overtook his body again as he panted, almost growling. Then Adrian rose from his seat and held both Lenz’s shoulders.

“I know how it feels right now. I didn’t want you to be triggered like this. But you have. So now, I want you to stay calm no matter how difficult it may seem. I’ve been through it, Lenz.”

“Been through what?!”

Adrian paused for a second, dropping his hands from Lenz’s shoulders. “You’re… I’m…” It was odd to see his father stutter and struggle for words. He had never seen Adrian so flustered before. “We’re Werewolves, Lenz.”

That instant Lenz was not sure if he should laugh or just walk away from all this madness. He stared at his father instead of gaping as Adrian probably would have expected. “I… actually thought we’d be Vampires.” He scoffed, rolling his eyes.

Adrian kept mum for a long minute before stating, “Jongin and I are.”

This time, Lenz gaped. “That’s why you and he… healed… Oh my god.” The words came out as puffs of whispers and he turned around to pace the room with a mouth covering his mouth. This was absurd. This was unbelievable. But Lenz saw no reason why his father would make such a thing up and the evidences were laying right before his eyes. He had thought his eyes were playing tricks at him when he saw them move at lightning speed. “This is… this is crazy. How can you’ve not told me that you were fuc… V-Vampires?!” he was yelling, he realized and Adrian’s face wilted even more.

“Lenz?” Jongin’s croak diverted their attentions at once and Adrian hurried to Jongin’s side but Jongin did not seem like he needed any help as he shot up from the couch. Lenz wanted to hug him, he wanted to his father to know that he was so damn glad that he wasn’t dead! But given the current mood, Lenz stood his ground with his hands fisted at his sides and jaw clenched. “Where’s the boy?” Jongin asked, blinking his eyes rapidly.

Adrian looked to Lenz as if he was supposed to keep a tab on that peculiar bitch. “I don’t know. Why’re you looking at me?” he hissed. “He just left.”

“And you let him go?” Adrian snapped.

“He said he’ll come back. I would have killed him if he had stayed.” He admitted and was horrified by his own revelation. Adrian and Jongin both shot him a sympathetic look as if they had lost their son.

“He’s around.” Adrian sighed. “I can smell him. Are you all right?” he asked Jongin who nodded once in reply while his eyes were fixated on Lenz.

“Lenz, listen. Neither of us wanted to lie to you.”

“Really, dad? You didn’t… just lie. You constructed my life on a heap of lies! My life is a lie! And I honestly don’t know how many lies you have actually told me.” He turned his attention to Adrian. “Was my mother really killed in a car accident? Or did you kill her to be with him?!”

That was when Adrian’s hand came up to clutch Lenz’s shirt’s collar. “Another word about your mother or Jongin and you will regret it greatly, Lenz.” He snarled and for the first time ever, his father stood before him like a beast ready to fight.

“Stop for god’s sake!” Jongin tore Adrian’s hand off Lenz’s shirt and placed himself between them. “Adrian, he’s undergoing transition. Nothing he says right now means anything.”

Not once had his father ever raised his voice to him. And tonight, Lenz knew that he did not belong in this family of murderers. “What do you feed on?” he blurted the question out and they stared at him in disbelief. “Blood. Human’s blood.” He answered the question for them. “That’s why you forbade from going into the basement. That’s why you have it locked.”

“Lenz, calm down. We’re not just Vampires. We’re both Werewolves, too.”

“How… what?” this was getting worse.

“But you… you’re…” he threw Adrian a painful glance before pursing his lips. “You’re his son. He and… Lena—”

“Jongin.” Adrian interrupted with a hand curling around Jongin’s elbow.

“He needs to know, Adrian.” Jongin smiled for a very short second. “Lena, your mother was my cousin. I… Adrian and I didn’t meet after your mother’s death. We were Werewolves, we were in the same pack. He and I were… the Chosen Heirs for the First Alpha, which I assume you know what it means. I became the Alpha when your father left with Lena. When he returned after Lena was killed by a Vampire, you were with him. Then… a lot of things happened. We’re hybrids now. You’re… you’re just a Werewolf, with so many more options and still a life to live…. We’ll tell you everything, Lenz.” Jongin said in a consoling tone. “Everything that you need to know. But you need to calm down first and let us speak. Hear us out.”

Out of all that, only one thing clearly registered to Lenz. _Lena was killed by a Vampire._

“That can wait.” The foreign voice boomed into the house as the door was shoved open. Lenz scowled at the blazing red hair as the boy slammed the door shut behind him. “You’ve got bigger problems than to deal with this hormonal teenage boy.” He snorted and Lenz would have picked up the gun and shot at him if he weren’t so disturbed by the fact that this boy was also a Vampire. The scent was too foreign, too strong, and stronger than the scent Adrian and Jongin carried. Why did all these scents only register to him now? Why had he never picked up the scents on his parents before? And since when he was capable of such anger? Gritting his teeth, Lenz lowered to flump back on the couch.

“Who are you?” Adrian demanded, facing the scarlet-haired boy. He looked shorter now, standing in the light, but wasn’t too short. The black coat could not beef up his lean, slim body and his face was too perfect to be a human’s. Every feature on his face seemed like it was sculptured with great care and he certainly did not look like a boy who had seen any hardship in life. He was a fair-skinned boy and the flaming red hair was the most attractive attribute he carried. He’d look beautiful if only Lenz didn’t want to punch his teeth in.

“My name is Selvyn Sinclair. My father is called Raydon. As I said, he’s the first hybrid that Vance had created.” His eyes darted to Adrian. “But now that… Vance is… dead.” He shrugged. “I suppose you’re Count.”

“I am.” Adrian glowered.

“So, yep. I’m at the right place.” He settled on the couch’s armrest. “I almost had you two tonight, didn’t I? If it weren’t your pet dog.” He rolled his eyes. “Somehow, my uncle did not mention this extra character.” He shot Lenz a brief look before returning his attention to Jongin and Adrian.

“You’re testing my patience, kid. For what you did tonight, I’m not going to let you go scot-free.”

“Well, would you have taken me seriously if I had just knocked on your door and said ‘hey, my father’s on his way to destroy you’?” he arched a golden eyebrow. “Besides, I always loved making a grand entrance. Point is, you felt what the bullet feels like. My father and brother have… millions of them. And better marksmen.”

“Why is he after us?” asked Jongin.

“Simple. He wants to be the Count.”

“He could just ask me nicely.” Adrian smirked.

“If he becomes Count,” the boy, Selvyn, lowered his voice as his expression turned grave. “He would build an empire of Vampires and hybrids. He couldn’t kill Vance because no matter how hard he tried, he was still sired to him. He was a common lycan like you.” he jerked his chin at Jongin. “He didn’t have it in him to break the sire bond. So he fled with his family. Vance couldn’t locate us. And soon the news that Vance had killed his first hybrid was spread. Vance was… seen as more powerful than ever. But he disowned my father from the hierarchy line. So he couldn’t claim his rightful position as Count even after Vance’s death. He wasn’t an heir anymore. Now that Vance’s dead, he’s no longer bound to him. He can become as powerful as he wishes to be by defeating you.”

Adrian and Jongin exchanged a glance. “Why are you helping us?” Adrian asked.

“Because… I don’t stand by my father and brother.” He said blatantly. “I don’t want to be their minion.”

Heaving a sigh, Adrian took his seat on the edge of the coffee table and clasped his hands together. “I don’t want to be Count. But if he’s planning something as devious as that, I can’t let him have my title.”

“Yeah. How are you planning to that? He has an army.” Selvyn stated. “You… have a docile lycan turned Vampire and a… lapdog.”

“I don’t have an army of Vampires, sure.” Adrian gazed to Lenz then Jongin. “The heir next in line for Count is… Kai. And he’s… the First Alpha of the Werewolves in Jackson. If he were Count as well, he’d be the leader of all Vampires and could get help from other packs of wolves.”

“No.” Jongin protested at once. Lenz cocked a brow, wondering who this Kai was. “Adrian, you can’t… we can’t. I’ve already taken so much from Kai. I can’t ask him to sacrifice more. He’s finally happy with Sehun. I can’t ask him of this.”

“Whoa, wait. Kai? Who’s that?” Selvyn inquired.

“My brother.” Jongin answered despondently.

“Shit.” He shot up at once. “I didn’t know you had a… Goodness.” He wiped his face with his bare palm and sighed. “They would be getting rid of him first then. The last heir, isn’t he? You haven’t taken an heir, have you?” he asked Adrian in a frenzy and Adrian shook his head confusedly. “You need to warn him. And you’re still the Count. You can ask—no, order Vampires to stand by your side. I know a clan. They’re quite primitive, but they would follow their Count’s orders. They will help you. I can bring you there.”

“Whoa whoa whoa. Slow down.” Lenz rasped, standing up. “I’m not following. What exactly is going on here? You’re trusting him? The guy who nearly killed you?!”

“They’re still standing here, alive, aren’t they?” Selvyn retorted, scowling at Lenz. “Look. You can choose to not believe me. But if you don’t, it’ll be too late to stop anything. You need to get to your brother.” He told Jongin. “If he’s the Alpha, then your Count’s right. He will be able to get some help.”

Adrian turned to Jongin and took him by the arm. “I believe him.”

“Adrian, you seriously can’t—”

“Jongin, I’m not willing to take any chances when it puts your life and Lenz’s at risk. We didn’t come this far to be bested by some overambitious asshole.” He faced Selvyn again. “Where is this clan you speak of?”

“He might be leading you right into a trap!” Lenz squawked.

“Well, you don’t really have much of an option, do you?” Selvyn scoffed, running a hand through his silk-like hair. “I made a clear demonstration of how your lives might end. Had it been my father or my brother, you would be dead by now.”

“He’s right. I definitely don’t want to take any chances, Jongin. And if Kai’s in danger, we ought to stand by his side. Moreover, you and Lenz will be safer with the pack right now.”

“Adrian, I’m not leaving you.” Jongin insisted, clinging onto Adrian’s shirt. “We haven’t talked to Kai in ages…”

“I will come back to you, Jongin. I promise. For now, you should leave for Jackson. Take Lenz with you. And…” he looked to Lenz who stood stock-still unable to digest any of this. “He should be around the pack at this time. It’ll make things easier for him to learn and adapt.”

Lenz cast his eyes to Selvyn who was frowning despite himself. “You’re a family, aren’t you?” he asked under his breath and lowered his head. “I never really had a… proper family. I’m sorry.”

Adrian nodded his head once before cupping Jongin’s face. “Start packing. I’ll book the tickets. I’ll meet you back in Jackson as soon as I can. That is if he’s telling the truth.” He loured at Selvyn who shrugged in response.

Lenz wanted to argue. He wanted to shout and yell that he was not going anywhere. But he decided to trust his fathers and not be a pain in the ass for the time being.

 

* * *

 

“Any hint?” Karm questioned impatiently and Sehun tried his level best to not scowl at him, or even look in his way. He had asked the question more than ten times since they had stepped foot onto the forest’s ground.

Kai pressed a hand to a tree’s bark, kicking off a root as if he had exhausted all his options. “Nothing.” He muttered with his back facing Karm. “They’ve used Vervain as well to contaminate the area. They must know that there are Vampires in this town.”

Sehun realized that too. He could not grasp any scent, not even a Werewolf’s due to the Vervain that hung on the air on the mountain.

“This just keeps getting better and better.” Karm groaned. “So they’re not Vampires?”

Sehun finally faced him with a frown. “You should clean that.” He pointed at the cut on Karm’s forehead.

“Go home, Karm.” Kai added. “And tell the pack I’ll meet them tonight.”

With that, Karm left them, surprisingly without an argument. Sehun sensed the tension that surged through Kai’s body. He looked greatly distressed and disturbed as he aimlessly scowled at the woods. “Kai?” Sehun advanced forward and rested a hand on Kai’s back.

“Who could it be now?” Kai whispered as if he was talking to himself. A frown tugged at Sehun’s eyebrows before he kissed the back of Kai’s shoulder. He heard Kai let out a loud sigh. “Harrison has a small kid. He almost died. I need to find out who this bastard was. And yet, neither of us could even track his scent.”

“I want this to stop.” Sehun muttered and Kai turned around to face.

“What?”

“How long…” he stopped himself and clenched his eyes for a moment. “Kai, this will never rest for as long as you’re Alpha. This burden that’s on your shoulders… and everybody looking up to you. You can’t be their Alpha forever.”

That earned him a scornful scowl from Kai. “What do you mean, Sehun? I _am_ the Alpha. Therefore, they’re my responsibility.”

“I understand. But don’t you see… There’s always something thrown in our way that pulls us apart.”

“I don’t understand what you’re saying, Sehun. Do you want to just live a life going to Chanyeol and Krystal’s children’s birthday parties and grocery shopping?”

Sehun cocked his eyebrows. “Seriously? Is your life with me that boring? Is that what it all is?”

“Stop it. I can’t do this right now.” Kai turned his back to Sehun again. “Whoever that ambushed the pack must be aiming for something else.”

Sehun bowed his head, gnawing on his lip. “Right. You’re the Alpha. You know your shit. I’m not exactly useful here, am I?” he spat and turned on his heel before starting back to the car.

“Sehun!”

It maddened him to realize that Kai still had a meaningful life. He was still important to so many people. He had a duty, a purpose to live. And Sehun… well, he was just jealous of the man he loved.

He came to an abrupt halt near the roadside when his eyes landed on the man who stood before him, hands locked at his back and a smirk playing on his lips. There was no scent on him, except for the Vervain and Wolfsbane’s toxicity. His glimmering red hair was slightly long, long enough to curtain his eyes but he kept it swept neatly to the side and it reached the nape of his neck, again neatly tucked behind his ears. His black clothing was in contrast to his brilliant red hair. He looked older than Sehun himself, but probably not more than two, three years maybe. His body was well-built, but not too bulky or lean. “Who are you?” the words rolled off Sehun’s tongue lifelessly.

The guy’s smirk widened into a fully-fledged smile. “Tell your boyfriend that I, Skylar Sinclair, was the one who almost ripped his friend’s head off his body. And… I’ll be coming for him.” his words were carried by the wind and his gracefulness struck Sehun dumb for a second. But with just that, the red-haired guy bolted out of there and vanished into the thick woods of the mountains before Sehun could even move a foot closer.

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Skylar Sinclair?!” Kai burst out of the car and stood under the searing summer sun for a moment, gritting and grinding his teeth before he slammed the car’s door shut. “Who the fuck is this new bastard?” he groaned to himself, scrubbing his face with his palms.

“I’ve never seen him before. He’s a Vampire, I’m sure. But in all those years I lived with Vance, I’ve never met him.” Sehun muttered with his head swimming in bafflement.

“Well, he’s not after you. He’s after me, isn’t he? What did he look like?” Kai was scowling endlessly.

“Red hair. You could spot him anywhere with that red hair. It wasn’t ginger. It was… scarlet red. And… he was young.”

“Fuck. I have no idea which Vampire I pissed off. God.”

Sehun extended a hand to touch Kai’s cheek. “We’ll figure it out.” He stopped himself when the scent caught his nose. It quickly registered to Kai as well. They spun around to meet the boy who was walking up to them, gripping the strap of his bag.

“Great. More strangers.” Kai rolled his eyes, but the scent seemed somewhat familiar. The boy was tall and resembled someone that Sehun was really familiar with. Brown-haired, broad-shouldered, young, but carried himself like a man. Then behind him, followed the man Sehun had not seen in more than a decade. “Jongin?” Kai rasped as Sehun’s heart swelled upon seeing Jongin. There will never be a time when he would not love Jongin. Blinking his eyes, Sehun shook his head. “What is he doing here? Jongin!” Kai jolted forward to his brother before yanking him into a ferocious embrace with a fanatic grin etched on his face.

“Kai.” Jongin wrapped his arms around Kai before he withdrew himself. “This is—”

“Delenz Prescott.” Lenz. Lenz! Sehun instantly beamed at the boy.

“Jesus Christ.” Kai let out, staring at Lenz. “Lenz?! The annoying little baby?”

“What?” Lenz blinked blankly.

“How did you grow so tall and… big?”

“Kai.” Jongin interrupted. “We have a problem.”

Sehun took several steps forward before Jongin’s eyes fell on him. He offered Sehun a subtle smile and fixed his gaze on Kai again. “Problem?” Kai side-eyed Lenz. “Shit. He hit puberty.”

Lenz cringed and shook his head before rolling his eyes. “Hi, Lenz.” Sehun held his hand out and the boy quickly took it. “Don’t mind him. He’s a goat’s piss most of the time.”

“I can see that. And you are…”

“Sehun.”

Lenz’s jaw fell slacking but he quickly hid his shock. “Oh. Nice to meet you.”

Sehun nodded and turned to Jongin. “How are you? How’s Adrian?”

“That’s the problem.” Jongin sighed. “We’re being hunted down.”


	19. “I’ve never seen you here before.”

Lenz now saw reason as to why both his father and his brother coveted this man—who wouldn’t? He had not been able to react well to the backstory Jongin had narrated during their flight. Now, he wondered if Jongin had ever fallen out of love for this strikingly blonde boy because he wasn’t sure how anyone could. He also hadn’t been able to react well when he met Sehun, the man his father had once loved and his uncle still loved to this date. The man who had been the star in both of their lives. Lenz could barely keep his eyes off Sehun.

“Do you need water, Lenz? We’re out of… anything else.” Sehun offered with a faint smile playing on his lips. Lenz kept his teeth clenched and hands fisted as he took his seat on the couch after settling his backpack on the floor.

“No, thank you.” he muttered and glanced to Kai who had his face buried in his palms and eyes closed, sitting on the couch across the coffee table. Jongin had left out a very important detail about his brother—the fact that he was his twin brother.

“We’ll look for a lodging outside.” Jongin told Sehun when the latter extended a hand to take his luggage.

“Don’t be mad, Jongin. You can stay here.” Sehun protested with a frown tugging at his brows.

“No, really, Sehun. It’s fine. And I’m thinking about bringing Lenz over to my parents’ house and maybe…” he threw Kai a glance before heaving a sigh. “I was wondering if Kai and the pack could—”

“Forget about it.” Kai murmured without raising his head or opening his eyes. Lenz let out an exasperated breath, finding himself vexed by this man’s attitude. Something told him that he was not going to have it easy with his uncle.

“Kai.” Sehun hissed. “I’m sure he’ll help, Jongin. Won’t you, Kai?” he tossed Kai a scowl.

Bringing his head up, Kai looked over his own shoulder and scoffed at Sehun before facing Lenz. “I won’t. I’m not exactly the doting uncle type.” he said with expected blatancy, smirking at Lenz who mirrored his smirk.

“Why are you such a—”

“It’s all right, Sehun.” Jongin raised a hand to Sehun’s shoulder and Lenz noticed Sehun flinching before Jongin quickly dropped his hand back to his side. Pursing his lips awkwardly, Jongin retreated to take his seat on the couch next to Lenz. He could feel the alienism that stretched between Jongin and Sehun. For some odd reason, Lenz wanted Adrian to be here right now. Paranoia overtook his mind that instant and the fact that Adrian was thousands of miles away from Jongin right now while Sehun was only two feet away worried Lenz like a child not wanting to say goodbye to his parents on the first day of school. Casting Sehun—who flumped down to sit on the armrest of the couch Kai was on—a lazy look, Lenz sighed and tightened his jaw.

Kai cleared his throat and only then did Lenz realize Kai had his eyes fixated on him. Swallowing, he averted his gaze. “So what is this new fucking problem you’re talking about?” Kai demanded, rather annoyed.

Jongin rubbed his temples, licking his lips. “Apparently, the first hybrid that Vance created is after us.” He paused for a moment as if expecting a response. But when both Kai and Sehun gaped at him, waiting for more, Jongin continued. “Especially you and Adrian.”

“What?” Sehun was the first to respond. “That’s impossible. Vance had said that he had killed him. I knew it.”

“Yeah, apparently he hadn’t and now he’s out to hunt us down. You could guess why.”

Sehun and Kai exchanged a fatigued glance before Kai shot up to his feet with his hands clasped on the sides of his waist. “Is that all?” he almost laughed.

“Listen.” Jongin rasped. “It’s not as trivial as it may seem to you.”

“Jongin, Adrian’s the Count! Vampires follow him. I’m the Alpha. I lead a whole pack of Werewolves. There’s Adrian, you, me as hybrids. Do you seriously think there’d be some old ass hybrid trying to take us down?!”

“That’s the thing!” Jongin jolted up to his full height and Lenz realized he was never going to get used to the fact that his father had a twin. “We only stand a chance if we stand together!”

“Jongin, you can’t take this seriously.”

Sehun sat on the armrest with his head hung low as if he was disappointed with something or someone or rather this entire situation.

“I do, Kai.” Jongin spat. “Because I felt that bullet laced with Vervain and Wolfsbane pierce through my heart. I saw it kill my husband. I am not willing to take the chance and neither is Adrian. If you’re not going to help us, then at least look out for yourself. This hybrid called Raydon Sinclair will be coming for you and promise me that you won’t take this lightly.”

“Wait. What?” Sehun rose from his seat. “What did you say his name was?”

“Raydon. Raydon Sinclair. It was his son Selvyn Sinclair who came to warn us and Adrian is away with him to ask help from a Vampire clan.”

Sehun’s jaw dropped as he passed Kai a shocked gaze. Kai responded with a tired disappointment etched across the expression on his face. “You can’t be fucking serious.” He groaned and dropped back onto the couch. “There was an attack earlier today. And…” he looked up to Sehun.

“There was this guy… He said he’ll be coming for Kai. And he said his name was… Skylar Sinclair.” said Sehun.

“There you go. That must be Selvyn’s brother.” Jongin sighed. “Was anyone hurt?”

“One of them is.” Kai murmured. “This is insane. Just when I thought I could finally live a peaceful life, there comes a bastard wanting to kill me. Kill us all.”

Sehun rested a hand on Kai’s shoulder before stroking his hair at the back of his head. “Kai…”

Jongin continued to elaborate on the details and the more he said, the deeper Sehun and Kai frowned. When he had managed to convince them, Jongin wiped his face with his palm and glanced to Lenz. “You shouldn’t have to be here right now.”

“Dad, I’m not going anywhere.” Lenz retaliated. “Not when you need me.”

“Need _you?_ ” Kai scoffed. “Get up.” he rose to his feet first as Lenz arched a brow at him.

“What?”

“If they’re looking for us, you needn’t be in this mess. You’ll only be a weakness for us all. Get up.”

Lenz wondered if he could hurl something at Kai’s handsome face, but when Jongin did not protest, he stood up. Kai grabbed the keys from the coffee table and started towards the door. “Where are we going?” he asked Jongin who began to usher him to follow after Kai.

“To meet your grandparents.” Jongin smiled. “Your mother’s uncle and aunt.” He corrected.

 

* * *

 

 

The town had bloomed like a flower on the first day of spring. Lenz had grown up in the most lavish island, in a house by the beachside all his life. Coursing through such an old town with its primitive premises was a beautiful new experience. He kept his eyes out the window the entire time as the car rocked its way into the woods. This was his mother’s birthplace. This town was hers. The thought made him smile. This was the closest he could get to his mother.

Kai and Jongin had fallen silent at the front after their long discussion about the matter at hand, but not once had they discussed about their lives without each other all this while. Jongin hadn’t specified the status of their relationship after Kai had _stolen_ Sehun from Jongin. No. He had won and earned Sehun. Jongin had lost. Lenz could not imagine how painful it must have been for him. Did Adrian know that Jongin loved Sehun to this extent? That he possibly loved Sehun just as much as he loved Adrian? Lenz fixed his eyes back out the window. “Are you… happy?” Jongin inquired after a long moment of silence.

Kai pulled the car over and Lenz blinked rapidly at the house that stood prideful in the middle of the fresh green summer forest. “I am, Jongin.” He sighed. “And you?”

“More than happy.” Jongin muttered and stepped out of the vehicle before Lenz followed suit, slinging his backpack onto one of his shoulders.

“You know.” Lenz jumped a little when Kai draped an arm around his neck as they started towards the veranda. “You used to be chattier when you were young. With your poochacha and ooh ohh nana and kookoo booboo lala.”

Lenz didn’t know what to make of this man. He looked away, rolling his eyes.

“I like you better this way.” Kai scoffed and patted on his shoulder before leaping up the steps of the veranda and knocked on the door. Jongin licked his lips, looking a little agitated. “Do you have your face ready for mom’s fist?” Kai asked Jongin.

“She wouldn’t hit me.” Jongin smirked.

“Oh, you’re so sure?”

“Yeah. I was always the apple of her eyes.” He shrugged and Kai scowled.

“You’re just delusional.”

“We’ll see about that.”

The door sprang open and Lenz pursed his lips when the woman with streaks of grey hair appeared. “Jongin!” she gasped before exhibiting any sort of expression and threw herself onto Jongin, wrapping her arms around his body. “Oh my god!” she instantaneously burst into tears as she panted against Jongin’s chest.

“Mom.” Jongin curled his own arms around her shoulders and nuzzled his nose into her hair.

“Where’s Adrian?!” she rasped, pulling back from his arms.

“He’ll be here soon, mom.” Jongin turned to Lenz and his mother followed his gaze. “This is Lenz, mom.”

That instant, Jongin’s mother—his grandmother’s lips parted as beads of tears trickled down her pink, wrinkled cheeks. “No.” she let out and clasped her hands on the sides of Lenz’s face. Lenz beamed, cupping her hands over his cheeks. “Lenz. Oh my. How big you’ve grown…”

Lenz half-expected Kai to look annoyed, but he was smiling at them. He looked… satisfied and somehow fulfilled. His grandmother drew her hands to along Lenz’s shoulders and smiled faintly. “Hi, grandma.”

“Whoa. You’re a grandma now, mom.” Kai snorted but went completely silent when the tall man walked through the door. “Dad.” Kai murmured, lowering his head a little.

“Honey!” his grandmother screeched, spinning around. “Look! They’re back.” she smiled at Kai with glistening eyes. “They’re all here.” She whispered with a hand still resting on Lenz’s shoulder.

“Jongin.” The man flashed a half smile at Jongin who bowed his head, reflecting his smile.

“Jongin and I have to leave now.” Kai interrupted. “Dad, I’ve called for a meeting tonight. It’s about the ambush and…” He pinned Jongin with a knowing look. “Jongin has something to say to us all.”

 

* * *

 

 

Frowning and sighing at the dead phone’s screen, Lenz rose from the bed before plunging the phone back into his back pocket. He peered out the window for a minute and unconsciously grinned at the darkness of the night outside that laid like a thick blanket over the canopies of the forest. The scorching summer heat had finally surrendered to the relaxing night time ambience. The brilliant stars that dusted the velvet sky bound eyes to the heaven and Lenz found himself admiring the calmness of this small town. The house was almost empty with Jongin, Kai and their father gone. Lenz wondered where the so-called important meeting was being held, but he knew he wasn’t going to find out. Sucking in a long sigh, Lenz drew away from the window and glanced around the room. He wasn’t sure whose room this was, but all the photos around the room suggested that it had to be Jongin’s. He couldn’t help but smile at one of the photos in which Jongin and Kai were holding hockey sticks. He didn’t know which one was his father, though.

“Lenz?” he looked to his grandmother who peered into the room with a sheepish smile etched on her lips. “Will you come down for dinner?”

Grinning and nodding his head, Lenz started for the door. “When will they be back, grandma?”

“I’m not sure, darling.” She sighed. “I’m sure they will be fine. I’ll heat the food up.” with that, she hurried down the stairs as Lenz quietly followed after pulling on a t-shirt.

He knew tomorrow will be worse than today. But he felt as though he would fit in here, as though this place was home. He was certain that more conflicts and disputes will be taking place between Kai and Jongin and whoever that was concerned. And here he was. Doing nothing to help. He doubted that either Jongin or Adrian would allow him to help in any sense. But he could not just sit back and watch while his fathers, uncle and everyone else fight the inevitable fight. However, there wasn’t much that he could do anyway. Not when he was the weakest among them.

While he waited for his grandmother and dinner, he took the liberty of venturing the veranda and porch. The calm stillness of the night and cold breeze bristled his hair when he stepped out of the house. The matte charcoal black sky preened on its radiant specks of stars as the woods prided on its freshness and foliage. Lenz leaned over the railings of the veranda, smiling aimlessly at the wind that caressed his face. Perhaps this was his real home. This forest. This ground. Lenz longed to press his hands onto the soil and run alongside the wind. Sticking his hands into the pockets of his jeans, he climbed down the steps of the veranda and started for the welcoming forest. Pulling his hands back out, he slowly broke into a jog. He drew in the cold air that filled his lungs with its intensity and boosted his strength along with the blood flow. Lenz picked up his pace and exploded into a full-fledged sprint into the woods. Even in this darkness, the stars lit up his path and he gasped a little as he jumped over an upturned root of a tree. Laughing to himself, he galloped over a log and raced across the trees. He knees began to burn a little and he realized he was running faster than he should… he could. As an athlete, he knew this speed and strength were impossible for a normal human being. His laughter reverberated through the forest and he jumped over another root before he caught an anomalous movement between the trees.

He gasped in a mouthful of air as he picked the speed of his sprint to keep up with the shadow that wove past the trees in a vigorous pace. _What the hell…_ His mind turned into a blank slate as he raced after the zooming shadow, unable to register if he really was seeing it or was it just his eyes playing tricks at him because he surely had seen plenty of unbelievable things today. The shadow bolted in a curve and Lenz changed the direction of his route before vaulting over a felled tree. He landed on the ground with a great thud on his feet and the feeling overtook his body with its rush and excitement. Smiling to himself, he charged towards the shadow and it took him less than ten meters of sprint before he caught up to the shadow.

“Urgh!” he heard a cry of disapproval when he launched himself onto the shadow and he landed right onto a harsh softness. In the face perplexity, Lenz groaned and gasped as he grabbed the wrists of the man he had run into and pinned the wrists to the soil with a sudden mountainous strength that surged through his body. Holding the hands down, Lenz froze for a moment when his dark eyes met the impossibly green ones that glimmered under the stars. He felt no heartbeat other than his own with his chest resting on top of the other guy’s. Something in those green eyes were so dangerously alarming that Lenz’s heart stopped beating for a second. It felt as though he had lost his entire world that moment. Even under the meagre light of the stars, the guy’s red hair was set ablaze. It looked brilliant. The only other person Lenz had seen with such a striking hair was Selvyn.

The guy went stock-still and stiffened under Lenz as he glared into his eyes. Lenz was not sure if his heart was racing because he had run this hard, but it certainly did not skip a beat for that reason. His head swam in the delusion of the honeysuckle scent and the scent became etched in his mind at once. He wasn’t certain of what was happening to him at that instant. All that he knew was that he was unable to move, but he was suffering a cruel turmoil within. “Get… off… me.” The guy growled in his deep voice and Lenz realized he was gripping his wrists harder than he should.

Gasping, he released the stranger’s wrists and scampered to his feet. “Sorry.”

The red-haired man rose to his feet steadily and ferociously scowled at him. He stood almost as tall as Lenz, but was nowhere near as big as Lenz. However, his broad shoulders complimented his well-built body. He ran his slender fingers through his slightly long hair that curtained his eyes and pushed it back. “Who are you?” he asked, irritated.

“Who am I? Who the fuck are you?” he demanded with his chest heaving.

“I’ve never seen you here before.” Now he sounded irritated at himself.

“And a Vampire like you have no place here.”

“Right.” He smirked and Lenz’s heart skipped another beat as his stomach knotted. Without saying anything more, he turned on his heel and Lenz unconsciously lurched forward and grabbed hold of the guy’s arm.

“Wait. Who are you?”

The stranger glared at his grip and Lenz only tightened his hand around his arm.


	20. “You don’t think my love for you is real.”

He had sworn to himself that never would he be a burden, much less a stumbling block in Kai’s life. He had made Kai a promise on the first night he had professed his love for the man that never in his life would he doubt the love they shared between them. And yet, here he stood, aimlessly outstaring the harmonious layers of the summer dusk’s hues, wondering just about how much Kai was giving up in order for the happiness of the guy he loved. The glass of the door was lukewarm against his cold palm as his eyes raked the salmon pink strips against the orange that blanketed the sky that was strikingly blue only a moment ago. The truth was—Sehun could covet the mundane, humane life all he wanted to. But he was a monster, a creature of the night, a bloodthirsty beast. Whatever humane life he hankered for would always be short-termed. Thirteen years of nothing but just a life filled with love and passion. The life he had always hungered for. And now, it was about to be shattered right before his eyes.

_Raydon Sinclair._

The name clenched Sehun’s heart and fired the fear that he thought was long gone within him. He did not know that he would fear for his life again. And the only reason he feared for it now was because Kai was part of his life. For some peculiar reason, he found himself worried for Jongin as well. Sehun was no fool to deny the fact that he still loved Jongin regardless of his love for Kai. It was not something that could be helped. Seeing Jongin with Lenz in the morning sparked a whole new range of jealousy within him. That was something he and Kai can never have and even the thought of it tired Sehun a little. As a Werewolf, Jongin would not question Adrian’s love for him. But as a Vampire, Sehun still had not grasped the entire imprinting process. Everything he knew about Kai before they officially started going out thirteen years back was second-hand memories—the memories that Kai had implanted in his mind. He had no real clue of how Kai might have fallen in love with him except for the fact that he had imprinted on him. Therefore, the questioned remained. Had Kai not imprinted on him, would they still be where they were right now? Sehun was not sure he wanted the answer to that question.

He let himself shudder against the hard chest leaning on his back as a pair of strong arms snaked around his waist from behind. “What is it that you’re thinking so deeply about?” Kai’s hoarse voice was blended with a hint of purr as he pressed his chin to Sehun’s shoulder. Sehun kept his gaze fixed on the darkening sky as it slowly began to gloat its glimmering constellations. He let himself rest against Kai’s body with Kai’s lips grazing the side of his neck. “Sehun?” he whispered with the tip of his nose brushing Sehun’s earlobe. “Aren’t you getting ready for the meeting?”

“Why should I even be there? I’m not part of your pack.”

“Sehun… What’s wrong?”

Letting out a sigh, Sehun turned around to face Kai’s perplexed expression that was hinting concern as well. “I honestly don’t know what to make of any of this, Kai.”

“Sehun.” Kai clasped the sides of Sehun’s face and inched closer. “We’ll get through this. After everything that we’ve been through, this is nothing. Don’t worry.”

“Maybe we should’ve just left. A long time ago.” He pulled Kai’s hands off his face and turned his back to the man, gazing out the balcony’s door again.

“What’s wrong, Sehun?” He sounded a little a vexed and tired. “You wanted to stay here.”

“Not forever, Kai.” He spat, clenching his jaw.

“What does that supposed to mean?” His hand came up to clutch Sehun’s arm and Sehun swatted it off before facing him again.

“You have a wonderful life here, Kai. You’re the Alpha. People need you. Your pack needs you. But I need you, too.”

Kai’s expression softened as he latched a hand to a side of Sehun’s waist and the other on Sehun’s cheek. “And you have me, Sehun. My pack is my family. But you’re my family, too.”

“No. You don’t get it.” He pulled himself away from Kai and stomped to the bed before flumping on its edge with his hand cupping his jaw.

“What don’t I get?” he demanded with his eyebrows furrowing into an annoyed scowl.

“I might just seem as something you’re forced to drag along with you because you helplessly imprinted on me, but you’re everything I have left to keep me going.”

“What the fuck does that supposed to mean?!” he lashed out and Sehun noticed his hands balling into fists at his sides. “You think I’m living with you because I imprinted on you? Is that what you’ve been thinking all along?! That I have no other option but to be with you because I goddamn imprinted on you?!”

“Is that not the truth? Well, according to what you’ve told me, you once hated Vampires. And then you suddenly fall in love with one? Jongin had loved me without imprinting on me. He didn’t need an excuse to love me.”

“What the f…” he stopped himself to pant, clasping a hand to his forehead as he began to pace the room. “You can’t be serious, Sehun. Are you really doing this right now? _Excuse?_ So my excuse to love you is that I imprinted on you. Is that what you’re trying to say?”

Sehun clenched his eyes for a moment before he jolted up to his feet. “No. What I’m trying to say is that I can’t… live with more threats after me.”

“Then what? You want to run instead of facing the fight? Just as you’ve run from your father all those years? When are you ever going to trust me, Sehun? I would give my life to keep my family safe. That includes Jongin and you. Do you know what pains me the most right now? The fact that you think Jongin didn’t need a fucking _excuse_ to love you, but I do. And you’re right. If I hadn’t imprinted on you, things might have been different. I might not have fought as hard to be with you. But I would have loved you no matter what. Too bad you don’t believe that.”

“Kai…” Sehun struggled for the right words to say. “Look. Jongin was talking about guns and weapons. What do _we_ have? A pack of wolves and a handful of hybrids.”

“I don’t care, Sehun. I won’t run. I’m not going to abandon my brother and his family.”

“No. That’s not what I’m saying.”

“Then what is it that you’re saying? Sehun, I don’t back down from a fight. I’m a Berserker and if it comes down to that point, I will fight as a Berserker. Not as a Vampire. Whether you like it or not, this is who I am and my pack relies on me. If you’re scared, I can…” he lowered his head that instant. “Arrange for you to leave.”

“I’m not going to leave you, Kai.”

“I’m not going anywhere. That’s it.”

Sehun slowly nodded his head, sinking back to the bed. “I’m not asking you to.” He muttered, staring at his pale palms on his lap.

“So, that’s just it, then?” Kai scoffed. “You don’t think my love for you is real.”

“I didn’t say tha—”

“What the fuck did you exactly say, then?!” Sehun only shuddered when Kai slammed the flower vase from the bedside table down before it shattered on the ground with a cacophonous disapproval. Pursing his lips, Sehun tried to swallow the lump that rose in his throat. “I’ve been trying so hard to make you feel like you belong here.”

“Don’t you see, Kai?!” his head shot up with a ferocious scowl etched across his face. “You’re trying to make me belong in your pack when I obviously don’t! Never in a million years would those dogs accept me and you know why? Because I’m a Vampire! And if you think they’re gonna help us fight a war, they won’t!”

“Those _dogs_ are my family, Sehun.” he snarled through his gritted teeth as his face filled with anger.

“Yes.” He rose to his full height and grabbed Kai’s shirt’s collar before hauling him close until their chest collided. Fisting his hand around the shirt, he growled, “You have a family. I don’t. You might have killed my father for good, but you killed Vance. The only family I had.”

That instant, Kai’s jaw fell as his eyes widened. Sehun withdrew his hand from his shirt and spun around to walk away. “Even after everything that he did, you can’t let go of the infatuation you had for him?! He destroyed your life!”

Sehun came to a halt. “All those people you killed during your transition into a hybrid. How many, Kai?”

Kai’s face wilted instantly with disbelief. “Sehun…”

“A thousand? More? Didn’t you destroy all of their lives, too? If you’re redeemable, then so was Vance.” With that, he stormed out of the room.

 

* * *

 

The dark woods that usually robbed one of Jongin’s senses laid plain around him. He had forgotten how amazing it used to feel when his paws were pressed against the damp loam of the forest’s floor, how spectacular it felt when the indestructible wind ruffled his brindle brown fur as he raced alongside it, how painful it had been to imagine Kai’s breath grazing his lips whenever he caught him during their runs. Now, under this thick black roof of the sky, the forest was just one of his many forgotten memories. It was as though he was returning to a land of lost treasures. Treasures that he had long buried.

“Everything is still the same.” Jongin remarked, carelessly crossing a root of a tree. Even from here, he could smell the powerful scent of the gathered wolves.

“Not everything.” his father retorted with a sly smirk. The man had gotten older, but not as old as Jongin would have predicted. The man looked more than happy. No. He looked proud and Jongin felt a tinge of guilt in the pit of his stomach. He had abandoned them all and yet, he was welcomed back with open arms. His parents in particular were more than delighted to meet Lenz, the only one who was the closest to a grandson they’d have. “Adrian trusts that boy.”

Jongin arched a brow, pressing a palm to the bark of a tree before hurtling past it. He was not sure if it were a question or a statement. “He does. I don’t.”

“I wouldn’t either.” The man sighed. “He is a Sinclair after all. If Kai has been warned by one, Adrian should be wary of another.”

“That’s the thing, dad. Adrian has his way of deduction. He’s always right about everything and everyone.” There was no lie in that. Jongin would never forget the night Adrian asked him if he was still in love with Kai. He wasn’t. But he was more appalled by the fact that Adrian could read right through him. That was one of the qualities he shared with Kai too.

“Does the boy Kai hangs out with know anything about these Sinclairs?”

Jongin blankly blinked at the way his father referred to Sehun. “Not more than what I’ve told him.”

“I see.” His father jerked his chin to the right, gesturing Jongin to walk in that direction.

“Dad?”

“Yes, son?”

“Are you not mad at me at all? For… eloping with Adrian…”

His father was mum for a moment before he heaved out a heavy breath. “I was just disappointed. We wouldn’t have said no if you wanted to be with him.”

 _It wasn’t that simple, dad._ Jongin thought but didn’t say it. At the time, he had left with Adrian to stay away from everyone. In order to have a normal life with him and Lenz. Furthermore, he needed Adrian to change him into a hybrid and it wouldn’t have been easily done if he had stayed in Jackson. The pack surely wouldn’t have let him. “It’s not about that, dad.”

“Your mother and I already suspected it from the way Adrian used to look at you when you were just teenagers. But then he ran away with Lena, we thought were wrong. You were the only one who didn’t notice it.” He passed Jongin a polite smirk. “I’m happy, Jongin. And Lenz is… well, Adrian and you brought him up well. He just looks so much like Adrian.”

“With Lena’s eyes.” Jongin admitted.

“Hm.”

They trod in silence for a stretch before Jongin broke it again. “If you can accept Adrian and Lenz… why can’t you accept Sehun, dad?”

“Please, Jongin. Not you, too. I never approved even when you were going out with him. He’s a bloodsucker and that fact is never going to change.”

“I’m a _bloodsucker_ , too, dad. And so is Kai and Adrian. Lenz is the only fully Werewolf in our family. You can’t single him out when we’re all an aberration.”

“Tell me something, Jongin.” he pulled his son to a stop. Jongin could hear the silent howls and soft murmurs that were carried by the wind of the forest. “Is he not the reason you and Kai were torn away from us?”

“Dad.” Jongin frowned. “He’s part of out family now.”

“I disagree.” He stated firmly and walked away. Jongin wasn’t sure if this meeting with the rest of the pack would go entirely well. But he had to try to convince them for the sake of the promise he made Adrian at least.

 

* * *

 

“What… what’s your name?” even through the fabric of the thick coat’s sleeve, Lenz could feel the coldness that bit his warm palm. The guy glared harder at his hand that was gripping his arm and Lenz found himself utterly mesmerized by the stars that danced in those emerald eyes.

“I have counted and made my mark on every last one of the dogs here. You fall short.” He murmured to himself and yanked his arm free with a ferocious force. Lenz’s breath caught and he wondered how much longer his body would keep acting so damn weirdly like this. He wanted to slap himself out of the incoherent frustration and the heat his body was doused in. His hair was scorching red in the thick of the night. Not everyone could pull that brilliant red hair off and so far, Lenz knew that boy Selvyn did, although not as beautifully as this man could. He was ridiculously handsome with features built on the generous lines of a God’s sculpture. He was no human. That was crystal clear. His honeysuckle fragrance overtook the freshness of the woods and the smell of bark and loam. Lenz’s eyes wandered a little lower to scan the man’s body. It was not a body moulded from hardship, but he was well-built, tall and broad-shouldered. When Lenz drew his eyes back up, he was met with the man’s annoyed glare. The red hair gave it away, but he looked nothing like Selvyn.

“You’re Sinclair.” Lenz said decidedly and the stranger stared at him without any sort of expression on his face that neither confirmed nor denied Lenz’s claim. His sharp gaze examined Lenz’s eyes for a moment before it travelled lower to scan Lenz’s body. “You’re that Sinclair that…”

“The one and only.” He replied cockily as a faint smirk tugged at a corner of his lips. “Skylar Sinclair.” He announced rather proudly.

Well, there. Lenz drew out an exasperated sigh, running his fingers through his closely-cropped hair as his stomach churned. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but the revelation disappointed him like no other. Gritting his teeth, he glared at Skylar advance a step closer. “You’re the one that’s after my uncle.”

“Hm.” The man seemed incredibly stoic and emotionless with a dry smile etched on his inconceivably pink-rich lips. He extended an arm and Lenz tried to not to flinch away when Skylar’s fingertips brushed his ear then his hair. “Who are you?” he asked in a low, almost whispery voice as he pulled out a dried leaf from Lenz’s hair. Gulping, Lenz took a step back. This red-haired man screamed danger and while Lenz wanted to rip his throat out on one hand, his heart hammered against his chest when his eyes raked the ripened lips on the other. “By your uncle, I take it that you mean Kim Kai?”

Glancing around him, Lenz wondered what he should do right now. He could call for help, but he knew Skylar would be gone in the blink of an eye. “Yes.”

“Ah. So you’re Kim Jongin’s son.”

“And you’re Selvyn’s brother.” Lenz spat calmly.

Skylar’s lackadaisical attitude died for a moment as shock filled his face. “Sel? How do you know him?”

“Well, let’s say that you’re not the only one with an upper hand here.”

“Shit, that idiot.” Growling, he turned on his heel and flipped his hair back before letting out a groan.

Exhaling a sharp breath, Lenz caught Skylar’s arm and spun him around. “You tell your father he is not going to touch my family. And if he tries to—”

“You dare to challenge us, you filthy dog?!” Skylar pulled his arm free and shoved Lenz back by the chest. “I could kill you right this instant.”

“So, why don’t you?”

“Because you will watch your family die.” He snarled. “One by one. Before the next full moon.” With that, he twirled around and began to bolt away from there before Lenz called out, sticking his hands into his jeans’ pockets as a small smile stretched his lips.

“So, when will I get to see you again?”

Skylar came to a halt, but didn’t turn around to face him. “I just told you that I will kill your family.”

“Yeah, I don’t think it’s possible.” Lenz shrugged. “So… Tomorrow? Right here? At noon?”

There was not a response for a long moment before Skylar scoffed, “You’re delusional.” That was all that he bothered to say before he jolted out of there. Smiling and almost laughing, Lenz shook his head. He had just frustrated a mega villain’s son. How much harder would it be to earn the friendship of both the sons? Selvyn was already on their side. Now, he saw the potential of befriending Skylar as well. Even if he needed to fake his friendship and betray the man, he was willing to go for it.

_Before the next full moon._

Sucking in a shaky breath, Lenz broke into a sprint back towards the house.


	21. “I can never belong anywhere.”

_How on earth did I become this ripped?_ Lenz sighed at his own brutal reflection on the full-length mirror and slid his fingers through the dry strands of his short hair. He had always carried a jock’s body, but now it seemed as though his physique had been revamped into a whole new level of masculinity and he looked ridiculously big, if not too muscular for a boy his age. He wondered what his friends would have to say if they saw him now. He felt his nape burn with embarrassment. How was it possible for him to grow this big within the duration of a week? It didn’t stop at that. Ever since his 16 th birthday, he was being forced to face more changes in his life other than just the development of his figure. He was unable to accept the fact that his father had a twin brother and although Kai’s boyfriend was the most beautiful and ageless man he had laid his eyes upon, even thinking about Sehun made him queasy. He had been nothing but polite and kind to Lenz and yet the latter could not stand the idea of him. He absolutely had no idea why he could not find Sehun as charming as Jongin and Kai did. If anything, Lenz wanted to hurt that pretty face. Just as much as he wanted to hurt Selvyn and Skylar’s faces. It was as if it was some sort of intrinsic instinct. Speaking of Selvyn, Lenz could only hope that his father made the right choice by deciding to trust that kid. And speaking of Skylar… Lenz exhaled another loud breath and grabbed his phone from the bed along with the earphones. Sticking the earpieces into his ears, he hurried out of the room in nothing but his black sweatpants.

Just as he reached the bottom of the stairs, he halted himself upon acknowledging Jongin’s presence with his mother in the living room. His father eyeballed his shirtless body with something like surprise and Lenz shrugged in return. “I know.” He scoffed, pulling out an earpiece. Jongin offered a faint smile before his mother spun around on the couch to hand Lenz a platter of biscuits.

“Good morning.” She chimed as Lenz declined the offer with a polite shake of his head.

“I’m going for a run.”

“In the woods?” Jongin inquired.

“Yeah. Is there a problem with that?”

“No. But… the others don’t know about you yet. So they might think you’re an intruder. Just be careful.”

“I will, dad.” Lenz bit his lip. “Uhm… how did the meeting go?”

Jongin exchanged a wary look with his mother before heaving a sigh. “Not well.” He muttered. “They’re… circumspect. And they don’t exactly believe us. But it’s because they’re really chary at the moment due to the ambush and one of them was really hurt. Kai said he’ll handle it.”

Lenz’s chest tightened. “Dad, are you kidding me? We came all the way here for nothing, then?”

Jongin shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, Lenz. They’ll have to follow their Alpha no matter what. As soon as the storm has calmed, they’ll be willing to listen. Right now, they’re all about killing that Vampire that had attacked them.” He boyishly scratched the back of his neck and he looked utterly fatigued.

“Dad… did you… eat?”

“Huh?” Jongin looked taken aback and he quickly nodded. “Yes, of course. You go ahead and don’t wander too far.”

He was lying right to Lenz’s face. He almost seemed like he was uncomfortable and on the qui vive of the idea of discussing about his meals with Lenz. “Dad, I’m not a child.”

“He most certainly isn’t.” his grandmother added rather proudly. “But, Lenz, you will forever be a child for your parents.”

Lenz smiled at that and started out the door. The song lightly thrummed in his ears as he jogged into the forest. He followed the direction he had run in last night and was amused by how vividly he remembered the path. He pulled his phone out once to check the time and grinned to himself when it showed two past twelve. With sweat beading his bare back, he picked up the pace of his jog.

 _Next full moon._ He should at least tell Jongin about the information he had gathered. But how reliable was this information? Could he trust Skylar? For all that he knew, the guy might be misleading him on purpose. He didn’t seem like the type that would let an important detail as that slip even in his sleep. The last thing Lenz wanted right now was to misguide everyone and have them blame him when things went bad. He ought to get further accuracy on the matter. But what if it were true? On the other hand, he knew what they would do if he told them Skylar roamed this very forest. As much as he wanted to hurt that guy, he didn’t want him actually hurt. He would never want anyone hurt. Well, maybe except his Chemistry teacher.

He came to an abrupt stop in the middle of the forest and tore the earphones off his ears before glancing around. Panting hard for air, he wiped the sweat off his forehead and pushed his damp bangs back. The soft calls of birds droned, elevating the harmonious ambience of the woods as Lenz’s sweat-doused body curled in the summer heat. The honeysuckle scent was all gone and all that was left was a venomous stench that stung his nose. Glowering to himself, he broke into another jog further into the forest—this time rather aimlessly. He could not even catch a whiff of his own scent that had been guiding him all this while as he ventured deeper into the trees.

He final ceased to a complete halt and leaned his back against a tree to catch his breath. The air suddenly seemed polluted and it choked him, mildly burning his lungs. The jagged texture of the tree’s bark pricked his wet back as he looked around the forest. _He’ll show up. He will._ Something about that particular Vampire was irrevocably captivating. The scorching sun simmered the ground from its highest point, gloating its brilliance like a golden medallion etched in the sky. Lenz wiped off another bead of sweat that trickled down his temple as he waited.

_He’s not coming._

Clenching his jaw, Lenz felt a rush of infuriation in his veins. He was not sure if he was more disappointed, annoyed, or provoked. Aggravated, he pulled himself away from the tree and ran his fingers through his bangs again to push them back. “Fuck this.” Spitting to the soil, he started back to the house with his stomach churning with irritation. What was he expecting? No, the real question was why was he even annoyed? Because his family’s enemy did not show up for their date? _For fuck’s sake, Lenz! What are you even doing?_

He was the enemy. And yet, Lenz found himself agitating even at the thought of that guy. Skylar Sinclair. The son of the man who was out to kill his family. “You have got some balls.”

Stopping in his tracks, Lenz’s heart ferociously skipped a beat. He slowly turned around to meet the guy who was clad in a long-sleeved, V-neck, navy blue t-shirt and a pair of faded blue ripped jeans. His glossy red hair blazed under the midday sun, capturing the rays in aesthetic ruby hues. Lenz’s jaw almost dropped if he had not been clenching it so hard. In this bright noon’s light, Skylar looked like a royalty of well-defined features. In contrast to his perfected lines and complexion, Lenz felt like a mere commoner. Suddenly self-conscious, Lenz realized how tanned his own body was and how messy he must look with his sweat-drenched hair. Not to mention he was standing there in his freaking sweatpants! Skylar’s flaming hair was trimmed at the sides and his slightly longer bangs were neatly swept to the side. He sported a silver watch on his right hand—which clearly suggested that he was a left-handed—and a thin silver chain around his neck, which was hidden under his t-shirt. His features were slightly more masculine in contrast to Selvyn’s and his face preened on the high cheekbones and sharp jawline. Sehun might be the most beautiful man he had ever seen. But Skylar had excelled in his looks. He was… supernatural after all. Did all Vampires walk around like they had a silver spoon stuck up their asses? Lenz rolled his eyes despite himself.

“And they’re exceptionally huge.” He retorted with a scoff. Skylar’s lips were shaped into a vague smirk. Those rosy pink lips and the dark-lined emerald eyes. Now that he saw Skylar in the daylight, he acknowledged the thick black eyelashes the Vampire flaunted. It seemed as though he was sporting eyeliner which suited both his scarlet red hair and green eyes. Lenz wanted to look away at once, but couldn’t.

“I’ve absolutely no doubt about that.” Skylar commented, sliding his hands into the pockets of his jeans. Lenz’s dark brows furrowed into a scowl when he realized the striking sweet scent Skylar was soused in last night was replaced by a foul and poisonous smell. Lenz wondered what the hell the stench was. It was almost incomprehensible.

“You’re pretty interested, aren’t you? I thought you were hard-headed enough to not to show up.” he mocked with a sly smirk, crossing his arms over his bare chest. That earned him a glare from Skylar.

“Where is my brother?” he demanded monotonously.

“Ah. So that’s why you’re here.” He leaned his side to a tree and smirked.

“You do realize I could torture the truth out of you, don’t you?” he slowly began to pace the forest’s floor but did not cross the distance between them.

“Oh, by all means, go ahead.”

Skylar pinned him with a hard glower. “Do you think I won’t?”

“You would have done that last night itself, if you wanted to. And I think you already know I don’t know where your brother is. So… you’re here just for your own amusement, aren’t you?”

Skylar’s hostile expression only hardened. It was clear to see that he held no affection for Werewolves, let alone Lenz. Perhaps he was regaled by the fact Lenz was trying to be nice to him instead of trying to rip off his head. “What about you?” he asked.

“Me? Oh, my name’s Lenz. I turned 16 only few days ago. I love basketball, hockey and swimming. My father is apparently the Count of all Vampires, but I’m sure you already know that.” His tone turned slightly grave. “So why don’t you tell me now what the fuck are you doing here.”

“I thought you had it all figured.” He smirked, but his smile was faltering.

“I do. You were sent to kill my uncle, the Alpha of the wolves here. So you’re just one of your father, Raydon Sinclair’s henchmen basically. While your brother is more of a rebel, you’re just a minion trying so hard to impress his daddy, am I right? You must be either too weak or too much of a coward because you can’t even attack Kai face-to-face. At least your brother had the guts to stride into the Count’s house and put a bullet through his skull. And here you are, the first born of the first hybrid, too scared of—” all air was knocked out of his lungs when Skylar bolted to him before his hand clutched Lenz’s neck and he was slammed against a tree. Lenz groaned, feeling the trunk of the tree snapping a little on his back.

“My father wishes to end your pathetic life. Otherwise, I would have—” Skylar gasped a little when Lenz grabbed his wrist and yanked his hand off his neck before shoving him. With Skylar pinned against the tree now, Lenz gripped both of his wrists.

“Ah, so I was right. You only do what your father says.” He growled and he knew his breath was brushing Skylar’s lips. Skylar’s fists came up to Lenz’s damp chest and he jammed him back until Lenz pulled away, staggering a step or two. “You’re an easy prey.” He snorted, pushing his luck further.

“You’re really daring, challenging me like this when you’re the weak one here.”

“Why don’t we test that out, eh?”

“I’m a 500 years old Vampire. And you’re a baby wolf. Do you really think you stand a chance against me?”

Lenz tried to keep a straight face to that sudden revelation. _500 years old?!_ “All right, then. Why not get rid of me?”

Skylar looked annoyed. “Because you’re not what I’m here for.” he spat and started past Lenz. “You’re just a waste of my time and energy. Besides, I’d love my brother to watch you and your family die in our father’s hands. No offense, but you’re not the star player here. Your uncle is. He’s the one I need. Killing you would be futile and not worth of my time.”

“Well, then, I’m sure we can find other ways to improvise and make that time worth it.” Lenz smirked and Skylar spun around, shooting him a grimace.

“Where the hell did you come from?” he hissed. “Teenagers.” Shaking his head, he turned on his heel. Grinning, Lenz didn’t bother to stop him as he watched Skylar vanish into the forest.

When he returned to the house, he found Kai and Jongin standing on the veranda, both wearing similar frowns on their faces. If it weren’t for Kai’s closely cropped hair, Lenz might have not been able to tell them apart. Leaping up the steps, he greeted Kai with a brief smile and turned to Jongin who looked like he might drop to his knees at any given time now. “What’s going on?” he inquired.

“Jongin, go home and get something to drink for fuck’s sake.” Kai growled before he draped an arm around Lenz’s shoulders, embracing him like Adrian always did. “And you, pull a shirt on. You’re poking my eyes with all those muscles. We’re going somewhere.”

Lenz arched his brows. “Where?”

“Don’t worry. I wanted to only sell you off to baby smugglers when you were a baby. I almost succeeded one time.” He faked a groan and Lenz couldn’t help but wonder what Sehun found charming in this man. Was he always this sarcastic?

“Just go with him, Lenz.” said Jongin tiredly. “I’ll be back before you’ll be.”

“Wait, where are you going?”

“Your father’s being an idiot by not feeding on anything when he has all this meat standing right in front of him.” Kai patted on Lenz’s abs before Lenz shoved his hand away. “Sehun will be there. And can you tell him I won’t come home tonight.”

“Really, Kai?” Jongin glared. “Why are you two being so childish? Kai, I don’t know what your argument with him is, but go home.”

“No. I seriously doubt he wants to see my face right now. He literally locked the bedroom’s door and didn’t even let me in to brush my teeth. He threw my clothes out on the staircase.” Jongin surprisingly smiled at that. Kai tossed Jongin his keys and withdrew his arm from Lenz’s shoulders. “Take my car.”

Nodding, Jongin rubbed an eye with the back of his hand before he started towards Kai’s black SUV. Lenz frowned at his father. He must be worrying over Adrian as well.

“Are you ready for some uncle-nephew bonding time?” Kai snorted and Lenz faced him with a sour expression.

“Where are we going?”

“To introduce you to some of the pack. I wouldn’t take my shirt off in front of them if I were you. They tend to get jealous and when they do, they bite. It’s almost mating season.”

“Marvellous.” Lenz muttered soullessly as he raised his hand to the doorknob before he froze. “Wait, _mating season?_ ”

 

* * *

 

Things did not seem like they were going well or at least in the direction he and Adrian had hoped for. The pack was wary of the risks they might be facing in this unnecessary war. It was not between Vampires and Werewolves. It was between the Count of the Vampires and a hybrid. Karm pointed out last night that it wasn’t their fight—and yes, it wasn’t their fight. Jongin felt his throat burn in thirst as he dragged his feet up the doorsteps of Kai and Sehun’s house. The house was much, much bigger and lavisher than the house he and Sehun used to live in. His mouth hungered for some of the metallic taste. If he weren’t part Werewolf, he would have gone on a murdering spree right now.

The door opened before he even rang the doorbell and Sehun held the door open with pursed lips. “Jongin?”

“Hey, Sehun.” Jongin smiled tiredly.

“You look—”

“I know.” He sniggered and Sehun immediately ushered him into the house.

“Wait here.” He jolted away before returning with blood bags in his hand as Jongin slumped back against the doorframe. “When was the last time you had anything?” he asked with concern deepening in his expression as he handed Jongin the blood bag. As soon as he yanked the stopper out, he gorged on the bag and viciously swallowed the red liquid in gulps.

Once he had drained the blood bag, Sehun handed him another and Jongin politely refused. “I’m fine. Thanks.” He sighed and walked out the door before sinking to sit on one of the steps of the veranda.

“Hey.” Sehun called in a soft murmur as he lowered to take his seat beside Jongin. “What’s wrong?”

When Jongin didn’t answer as he kept his head hung, Sehun brought a hand to his shoulder and Jongin almost shuddered at the contact. He pulled his head up to meet Sehun’s glimmering eyes. “I’m sorry. You’re not supposed to be dragged into this mess.”

“No, Jongin. All this is because of me. I messed everyone’s life up when I came to Jackson.”

“Vance is the one to be blamed, Sehun. Not you.”

Sehun smiled, but he didn’t seem convinced. He pulled his hand off Jongin’s shoulder and looked straight ahead. “I take it the meeting didn’t go well.”

“Not at all.” Jongin sighed. “The pack doesn’t want trouble.”

Sehun smiled sadly as if he had expected just that. “What is Kai going to do?”

“He says he’ll handle it. We’re just waiting for everyone to calm down. But we don’t have time. And I don’t even know if Adrian’s all right.”

Sehun looked away before he lowered his head.

“Sehun?”

“Hm?”

“What’s up with you and Kai? You guys are not arguing because of this problem, are you?”

Sehun rubbed the back of his neck and shook his head. “Sometimes I wonder why it never worked out between us. You and I, I mean.”

Jongin frowned as a string of memories poured into his mind. From holding Sehun’s hand to kissing him under the snow, against the lockers in school, in bed. He closed his eyes for a moment and shook the memories away. “It wasn’t because of you, Sehun. I was never…” he couldn’t bring himself to say that he was never in love with Sehun. There was a point in his life when he did. But his love for either Adrian or Kai had always overshadowed his love for Sehun. “I was a dick. That’s why.” He admitted and Sehun laughed despite himself.

“Between you and Kai, we both know who the dick is.”

“You have no idea how literal that statement is.”

They indulged themselves in a short extent of laughter before silence began to stretch between them. “Even after all these years, I…” he dropped his gaze as he trailed off.

“What is it, Sehun?”

When he looked up, Jongin was astonished to see the tears brimming in Sehun’s beautiful eyes. “I can never belong anywhere.” He muttered to himself, smiling to hide those tears, but when one of them betrayed him by trickling down his cheek, Jongin cupped a side of his face and wiped the tear off with his thumb.

“Hey… Sehun, what’s going on? Are you… not happy?” he rasped with a foreign pain tugging at his heart. Sehun leaned his head onto Jongin’s shoulder and Jongin froze. They stayed in the vague embrace for a long moment and Jongin grew more and more uncomfortable by the second. It unnerved him to hold Sehun so close. “Is it Kai?” he asked in a whisper and Sehun finally raised his head. Their eyes locked and Jongin found himself frowning into Sehun’s gaze. “Do I need to jam a fist up his ass? Tell me if he hurt you, I’ll make sure he gets his arrogant dick chopped off.”

Sehun broke into another soft chuckle but his tone wavered. When he glanced up at Jongin’s eyes again, they went completely still and silent. Jongin’s eyes slowly travelled down to Sehun’s lips as did Sehun’s eyes to his own lips. Then Sehun leaned in with his droopy bloodshot eyes almost lidded.


	22. “I like your spirit, kid. If I had a son…”

He dragged on Jongin’s scent until it filled his chest. It used to be comparable to Kai’s. But now, he reeked of another man’s dominance and possessiveness—Adrian’s scent owned Jongin, in and out now. Eight decades of misery struggled on Sehun’s lips as his eyes searched for Jongin’s gaze of comfort hopelessly. He wanted to pour himself out to Jongin, let go of all the pain and sufferings he had endured. He wanted to tell this man who had only loved him for who he was and had expected nothing in return, but just the very love. He wanted to tell Jongin how sad he was and how miserable it felt to never fit in anywhere. While Kai achieved everything a man could possibly covet—love, power, status, family—Sehun only had Kai. Although they both had paid a great price to be together, it was only Kai’s desires that were fulfilled. All that Sehun was left to live with was uncertainty and paranoia and yes, it was a small price to pay to be with Kai, the man he was undoubtedly in love with. But could he say the same for Kai’s feelings towards him? The huge, painful question mark remained for more than decade. He loved Kai more than himself, there was not a shadow of doubt in that. But just for how long can he live without letting Kai know of his suffocation? He felt trapped in this place with so many enemies waiting for the right moment to strike and tear them both apart. And the day he will part from Kai will be the day he will completely lose all sanity. In the past thirteen years, he had learnt that Kai will never be what Jongin was and Jongin will never be what Kai was. It was the gospel truth. And he didn’t love Jongin the way he loved Kai, yet he could not help himself but wonder how it would have turned out for him and Jongin if he had never met Kai.

No regrets. Only persecution complex.

His heart ached even at the thought of not having met Kai. But then again, everyone’s life would have been better if he hadn’t showed up at all. A sob rose in his throat and he clenched his fists. Jongin’s eyes stared down at his own as if they were desperately searching for answers. Jongin looked at him in concern and affection, he always had. Kai looked at him with passion and eternal and endless fervour, reaching out for reckless love. Sehun had looked at them both in the same way—with nothing but an ache to belong. Belong to them. His gaze slowly wandered lower to Jongin’s parted lips. He had forgotten how they’d tasted. But they resembled every bit of Kai’s lips that had left their own marks and etches all over Sehun’s body. He wanted Kai to be happy. But he knew that he could not spend an eternity just waiting for Kai to come back home every night, waiting for his embrace, waiting to be something more than just comfort to Kai and the world. They weren’t moving forward. They were just stuck in that cramped spot for the rest of their incessant, never-ending lives. If Kai had not imprinted on him, even he would get bored of Sehun eventually. Everything in Kai’s life was far more important than Sehun was.

Sehun closed his eyes for a very short second and when he flashed them open, those familiar lips bloomed for him, rosy and full. His neck stiffened with urge. Maybe he should go away. He leaned in, pushing himself closer until he was overwhelmed by his scent. Kai would not need him as much as he needed his pack. No one would need him. His upper lip brushed the plush lower lip and Sehun felt the other set of lips quiver a little.

“Sehun.” Jongin rasped under his breath before he pulled away, gently pushing Sehun back with a hand on Sehun’s shoulder.

For a second, Sehun shuddered at the mortifying horror jolt down his spine when he realized what he had almost done. “I’m so sorry.” He blurted out before shooting up to his feet and almost raced out of there before Jongin stood up to his full height and caught his arm.

“Hey, it’s okay.” He muttered as gently as he could sound. Lightly squeezing Sehun’s arm, he offered a soft smile, but Sehun knew he was just as abashed. “Sehun, what’s happened?”

Shaking his head, Sehun blinked his eyes twice before pulling his arm free. “I’m sorry, but you should go.”

“Bottling up everything would not do you any good, Sehun.” he said, this time frowning. “If I can help—”

“No, you can’t, Jongin. When we get out of this mess, you’ll go back to living your perfect life with Adrian and Lenz.” His gaze fell on the gold wedding band around Jongin’s finger. It seemed as though it was mocking Sehun with its glorious brilliance and power. “Your… husband and your son. And I’m happy for you. I’ll just be stuck here.” The words spilled out in an aggressive rush and Jongin seemed taken aback as his eyes widened.

“Sehun… What are you talking about? If you’re not happy here, why not just leave?”

“Because it’s that simple, hm? Kai is needed here. People look up to him. His family… his pack, they all need him. Where do I fit in any of this, Jongin?”

“Hey, hey. Look.” Jongin clasped Sehun’s shoulders and gave him a harsh shake. “Do you think I don’t know what it feels like to be an outcast? And I understand that Kai… Kai is…” he sighed. “He’s someone that everyone always needs, but that’s just who he is. No matter what, he is the one that gets everything he wants in the end. And that had made him somewhat conceited, I know. But you both have come too far for you to give up on him now.”

“I’m not giving up on him, Jongin.” Sehun felt the hot tears sting the back of his eyes. “I’m giving up on trying. Sometimes… I just want Kai to myself. But I know that he’s ambitious and he needs to be somewhere where he’ll matter more. Even now, he is… I think he is eager for this fight. It’s as if he wants it to happen. And he wants to lead. Where am I in this equation? I’m just his _mate_ for him to keep by his side.”

Jongin seemed confused. “That’s just how Berserkers and other dominating Werewolves are, Sehun.”

“Well, you might be okay with it, Jongin, but I’m not.” He retreated a step from Jongin and started towards the door.

“Sehun.” even by his tone, Sehun could tell that he was frowning. “Have you thought about… having a child? Maybe… start a family of your own?”

Sehun halted in his tracks as blood pounded in his ears. Was Jongin being literal? He had never heard anything more traumatizing than that, although the idea was incredibly tempting. Swallowing, Sehun turned and faced Jongin with an insincere grin. “Kai would want an heir, wouldn’t he? A purebred heir. Again, where would I be in this equation?”

Jongin pursed his lips and looked away as Sehun nodded his head once before walking into the house.

 

* * *

 

“So you’re saying that you just randomly pick a person and be like ‘ _yep, I want you, mate with me’_?” the entire idea sounded unbelievably ludicrous to Lenz and his ears ceaselessly rang to every word that Kai had just said to lecture him about the mating season as they trod through the forest until they reached the house that resembled nothing but a simple cabin.

Climbing up the creaking steps of the veranda, Kai shrugged. “Precisely. But it’s only that easy if you imprinted on another wolf in the pack. If you imprint on a wolf from another pack, there’ll be other rituals to perform before you slip it in.”

Lenz cringed at how explicit Kai’s expressions were. “And you imprinted on a Vampire?”

Kai kept mum as he knocked on the door.

Realizing that his uncle was uncomfortable, Lenz shifted the topic. “What if you imprint on someone who’s imprinted on someone else?”

“That’s very rare. We usually imprint on someone who has their caves open for our ramrods. And we seal the deal before they could open their caves for someone else.”

Clenching his jaw, Lenz rolled his eyes. “Yours is a ramrod, huh?”

Kai arched his brow before deliberately glancing down at Lenz’s crotch. “Don’t brag. Yours seems like a cannon.”

Lenz fought the urge to punch the man in the face, but there was no lie in what he said. The thought made him smirk to himself. “What about humans? Can we imprint on humans?”

“That’s rare, too. But when we do, we usually get weak pups. They’re useless to the pack to be completely honest. A kitten would do better. So don’t go around sniffing for a human’s cave.”

“You just enjoy being an asshole, don’t you?” Lenz scoffed and Kai smirked.

“That’s the sole purpose of my existence.” The door sprung open and Kai growled at the tall man. “What took you so long?”

The man’s hard gaze passed to Lenz. “Who’s this?”

“My nephew.” Kai clapped a hand on Lenz’s back and grinned like a proud uncle. “Lenzeloo Enkoodabooaoo, meet Karm Alastair. Karm Alastair, meet Lenzeloo Enkoodabooaoo.”

“The name’s just Lenz.” Lenz snarled, scowling at Kai.

“Your… nephew?” Karm’s eyes bulged out. “You mean to say… he’s Jongin’s…”

“Adrian’s actually.” Kai stated and ushered Lenz into the cabin-like house. “How’s Arkyn?”

Karm slammed the door shut, heaving a loud sigh. “He’s fine, Kai. You didn’t come here to pay a visit, did you?”

“I did. Where is he?” Kai helped himself to it as he wandered deeper into the house. Lenz looked to Karm and flashed a tight-lipped smile before glancing away.

“Who’s here, dad?” a woman’s voice reverberated into the hallway before the woman herself appeared. She was a _girl._ Her golden brown hair reached down to her hips in messy curls and locks, but beautiful all the same. Clad in shorts and a loose t-shirt, she bared out her mesmerizing tanned skin and Lenz found himself reflexively grinning at her when they made eye-contact. She was a youthful and wild beauty, eyes full of animalistic urges. And tall. Too tall. She faintly mirrored Lenz’s smile and he was forced to retract his stare when he heard a hoarse noise. He looked up at Karm who had his arms crossed over his chest and eyebrows furrowed into a ferocious glare. Lenz’s sheepish grin faded at once and he cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his hot neck.

“Who is it, Nadya?” this time it was a soft boy’s voice that surged into the hallway. Lenz had to perk his head to see the strawberry blond-haired boy who timidly stood behind the girl. Squinting, Lenz realized the boy was not even looking at him. He was not looking at anyone.

“I don’t know.” The girl whispered to the boy who was an inch shorter than her.

“This is Adrian’s boy. He’s here with Kai.” Karm introduced with a groan as he shoved past Lenz. “Make yourself at home. But don’t get too comfortable.” He growled, pointing an accusing finger at Lenz. “And you. Go to your room.” He hissed at the girl.

“But, dad, where’s Kai?” she inquired with a playful pout etched on her lips.

Lenz noticed the blonde boy cringing behind the girl. He couldn’t help but wonder why the boy had his head hung. “He’s in there. He came to see your brother.”

“Oh.” Nadya glanced to Lenz again with a thin smile and her father grabbed her by her arm.

“Go to your room.”

“Dad, I should get him something to drink.”

“Vinn will take care of that. You go.”

Letting out an exasperated breath, Nadya retreated to walk away after shooting Lenz one final smirk, leaving the boy alone. He was young but he was probably a year or two older than Lenz. However, the way he withdrew into himself made him look many years younger.

“What are you waiting for?!” Karm shouted at the boy. “Go get some water for him to drink!”

Nodding his head quickly, the boy scurried away, dragging a hand along with the wall. “Oh, that’s not necessary.” Lenz objected but Karm waved at the couch and he obediently took a seat. He wanted no trouble with this gigantic man.

After taking his seat on the couch across Lenz, Karm crossed his arms again. “So, you came here with Jongin?”

“Yes.” Lenz muttered, swallowing.

“So it’s your scent that the boys have been catching in the woods.”

“Oh… I had no idea. I’m sorry.”

Karm nodded and leaned back in his seat. “You’re part of the pack, then.”

Lenz wasn’t sure if it were a statement or a question, but he bowed his head to that. The silence that stretched between them could not have been any more awkward. Lenz tried his best to keep his gaze astray as Karm’s stare lingered on him the entire time. He only looked back to Karm when the strawberry blonde boy returned to the living room with a glass of crystal clear water in his hands. He stood by Karm, slowly handing the glass out. “He’s sitting on the other side.” Karm spat in the rudest manner possible and the boy seemed piqued for a moment. For the first time, Lenz realized how flushed the boy was with cheeks almost as pink as a cherry blossom. Unlike everyone else, the boy was pale, undeniably fair and unblemished. Any fairer, he could be a Vampire.

He slowly and carefully crossed the distance between the couches with his hands grasping the glass tight. Lenz pinned him with a confused glance and only when he fixed his eyes on the boy’s did he realize the rims of grey that bordered the black eyes. He held out the glass and Lenz jolted up to his feet in a frenzy in sudden realization before his arm accidentally knocked the glass over and the water soaked his shirt. The boy gasped, but Lenz quickly caught the glass before it could crash the ground.

“You clumsy good-for-nothing!” Karm started as he crossed the room.

“No, wait, it’s my fault.” Lenz rasped, but Karm had his clutch on the boy’s shirt before he hauled the boy back.

“Dad!” the roar froze Karm’s hand that was about to strike the boy who stood there, unblinking. “What the hell!” Kai showed up with a guy by his side—shirtless and showcasing his perfectly chiselled abs. His lean and lithe body was something Lenz didn’t have. Neither was the fascinating messy dirty-blond hair. He stood almost as tall as Kai, but seemed a little older than Kai. Definitely a potential college frat boy. “Get your hands off Vinn.” he growled, stomping over to Karm and yanked his father’s hand off the boy. Released, the boy, Vinn withered in the other guy’s arm around his petite body.

Karm looked embarrassed for a moment as he glanced to Kai who only shrugged in return. “We’ll take our leave, then.” Kai murmured and gestured Lenz to move. “Arkyn, take of yourself. We wouldn’t want you dead right now.”

The guy called Arkyn still had his arm around Vinn and his eyes on Vinn’s shivering lips. Lenz wondered what sort of relationship these two shared, but from the way Arkyn was looking at Vinn, it wasn’t hard to guess. “Who’s this?” Arkyn demaned, cocking a brow at Lenz as he withdrew his arm from Vinn.

“Lenzeloo Enkoodabooaoo.”

Lenz helplessly sighed. “Lenz.”

Arkyn nodded his head and extended a hand to Lenz’s surprise. Shaking his hand, Lenz realized Arkyn could be the only _sane_ boy about his age in this place that he could possibly befriend. “Arkyn.” He said with a short smile.

“Arkyn used to play with you when you were that irritating baby.” Kai scoffed and both Arkyn and Lenz’s eyebrows rose in amusement. There, he had already made a friend. “You’re gonna need to take Lenz out for a run, Arkyn.”

“No problem. Is tomorrow fine?” Arkyn grinned as Lenz quickly nodded.

“Yeah, sure.”

“All right, then. Karm, I need to speak with you tonight.”

“No, Kai.” Karm sighed. “We’re not going through it again.”

“You and the pack are coming tonight and that’s final.” With that, Kai turned on his heel. “Come, Lenzeloo.”

Lenz noticed Vinn whispering _Lenzeloo_ to himself as he clung onto Arkyn’s arm, staring aimlessly. Something told Lenz that they were going to have a talk about what just happened as soon as he and Kai left. Once they were back among the trees, treading back home, Lenz decided to ask the questions that were itching him. “Who’s Karm? Is he like a right-hand or something?” he interrupted Kai’s whistling that breezed through the forest.

“Something like that. A Second Alpha. If I die, he takes control since I don’t have an heir yet.” He said casually, plunging his hands into his jacket’s pockets.

“And… Arkyn?”

Kai was quiet for a while as if he was deep in his own thoughts. “Karm’s firstborn. A Chosen Heir.” He frowned at that. Lenz honestly didn’t have many ideas about Werewolf monarchy, but Arkyn looked like he was born a leader. “He’s 19, which means he’ll have to choose a mate soon.” He smirked.

“Enough with the mates, Uncle Kai. How about that girl?”

“She’s Nadya. Karm’s second child. Don’t flirt with her, I heard someone’s already imprinted on her. And before you ask, that blind boy is one those weak pups I was talking about. He was born to Karm’s girlfriend after his wife died and I don’t know why, Karm hates the boy to hell’s pit and back.”

“Wow.” Lenz breathed out, trying to keep up with Kai’s strides. “So they’re… half-brothers?”

“Who? Arkyn and Vinn?” a sly smile formed on Kai’s face. “Yes.”

“But…”

“Yeah, I know.”

They walked in silence for a moment and many unthinkable thoughts swarmed Lenz’s head. He finally decided to break the silence yet again. “So… you and… Sehun.”

Kai’s jaw tightened but he didn’t seem annoyed. “Your father told you our glorious stories, huh.”

“It was a long flight.” Lenz shrugged. “It really can’t be helped, can it? The imprint thing.”

“Look.” Kai came to a halt. “Can everyone just stop with the whole _‘I love Sehun because I imprinted on him’_? Jongin was capable of loving him without imprinting on him. So why can’t I?!”

Lenz raised his palms in defence. “I didn’t say nothing.”

Kai rolled his eyes, shaking his head. “Jongin wanted me to help you and I have. If you mingle with Arkyn, he’ll introduce you to the rest of the pack.”

“Uncle Kai… I don’t wanna just… mingle with the pack. I wanna help. Don’t think I’m gonna sit around, hanging out with wolf-boys while my family is struggling and fighting.”

Kai pursed his lips, staring blatantly at Lenz before he emitted an audible sigh. “I like your spirit, kid. If I had a son…”

Lenz’s lips curled into a satisfied grin and Kai scoffed.

“I wouldn’t let him near you ‘cause you’re a hormonal wolf with a huge cannon at the ready, looking for a cave to blow up.” He snorted and continued on his path. “You smell like you’d strike anyone down.”

“What the _fuck_?” Lenz hurried along.

“And call me _Uncle Kai_ one more time, I will kill you.”


	23. “I most certainly am not interested in fooling around with you.”

His eyes had been on the verge of taking on a sheen of water as tension was built behind them for a while now. The afternoon sun was beginning to set on the other side of the salmon clouds. Jongin was deeply aware of his heart clenching in his chest and his fear coupled with his worry. For the time being, he knew Adrian was safe. But there was absolutely no certainty that his husband would remain that way. He gripped the wheel harder as he steered Kai’s SUV into loamy driveway of his parents’ house. Adrian had promised that he would at least try and contact him as soon as he could. But he hadn’t and Jongin’s mind was stranded, searching his own explanations as to why his husband hadn’t called. He felt idle here, almost useless while Adrian was away dealing with more important issues. Sehun must have been feeling this way for a decade now. Jongin was not sure how he could help Sehun. Right now, only Kai could help him and Jongin doubted that his decisions will satisfy all the parties involved. One of them would have to lose something.

Pulling the SUV over, Jongin peered at Kai who was perched on the veranda’s steps with his head leaned on a wooden post. His eyes were on Jongin as the latter exited the vehicle and walked up to him. Kai wore an exhausted expression with a gloss of hopelessness in his eyes as he accepted the keys from his brother. Jongin almost scoffed at the thought of affording comfort to both Sehun and Kai in one day on doorsteps. He sank to sit on the step beside Kai and clasped a hand to Kai’s back. “What is it with you, then?”

Kai straightened up, letting out a loud sigh and shook his head. “Did you see Sehun?”

“Yeah, I did.” Jongin licked his lips, casting his mind back to the almost-kiss. “Kai… I know that I shouldn’t be the one to tell you this… but… I don’t think Sehun’s happy here.” His chest tightened when Kai shot him a fierce glower. “No, I mean… I think he’s ready to accept this place as his home. But something tells me that he thinks wherever you are… is home. He doesn’t like this town, Kai.”

Kai clenched his jaw, glancing away. “What did he tell you?” he asked through his grit teeth.

Biting his tongue, Jongin dropped his head before pushing his hair back. “He didn’t have to tell me anything, Kai. I can see it how miserable he is.”

“Why do you think you know him better than I do?”

“I don’t—”

“What did he tell you?” he pressed.

Sighing, Jongin shook his head. “You think you’re the one who needs him? Kai, he needs you just as much.”

“I asked you what he said, Jongin.”

“He told me that he doesn’t fit anywhere and he’s not important to you. Not as important as everything else in your life at least.”

That silenced Kai and his scowl. He seemed apologetic for a moment before he clenched his eyes. When he opened them again, he did not permit Jongin to read them. He looked away to the forest before them and pursed his lips. Jongin ceaselessly wondered what was running in Kai’s mind that instant.

“Kai?”

His brother glanced to him with a smug and tired look. “I don’t know how to convince the pack without sounding too authoritative. I’ve been trying so hard to make sure that they won’t see me as a control freak.”

Jongin understood where Kai was coming from. The pack had chosen Jongin as their First Alpha instead of Kai because of Jongin’s leniency. Kai was a harder to control. “If they won’t listen to your reasons, you won’t have any other option than to order them, Kai.”

“I know. That’s what bothers me.” He sighed. “They’re right on their end. This is not their fight and Arkyn had already gotten hurt for absolutely no reason. This is a fight between the hybrids, more specifically between that lunatic hybrid and the Count.”

“My husband, Kai.” Jongin corrected with a frown.

“Yes. And my nephew’s father. That is the only reason I’m standing with you to fight _for_ you.”

“But… you don’t have to. You can… leave. With Sehun. And hide.”

“If you think I’m going to abandon my family, think again, Jongin.” he spat aggressively. Jongin faintly smiled at that and lowered his gaze. “Even if the pack doesn’t help, I’m not going anywhere. And believe me, Sehun wants to help, too.”

“I know that. But what he’s worried about is the fact that he’ll be trapped here forever.”

Kai scrubbed his face with his bare palms and groaned. “I figured. Which is why I’m…” he trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck. “I don’t have an heir.”

“No.”

“Karm does. Arkyn is a potential Alpha. There’s no doubt in that. And right now, everyone’s thinking that he’s the only Chosen Heir in the pack. But you and I both know who should’ve always been the Alpha.” He lowered his voice as he spoke.

Jongin blinked his eyes with vacancy. “I’m not sure I’m following.”

“Jongin, I only started to covet the position once Adrian was out of the picture. All this while, Adrian was supposed to be the First Alpha. So automatically, his son is capable of challenging the Heirs for the position.”

Jongin’s jaw dropped as his eyes bulged out. “No… Kai, Lenz isn’t—”

“I’m asking you, Jongin. Let me make him my heir.” He sounded like he was both offering a deal and pleading. Jongin, rather appalled, shot to his feet and Kai followed suit.

“Arkyn is Karm’s son. He’s been in the pack since the day he was born. Lenz is a complete stranger no matter how he’s related to the pack, Kai. What makes you think the wolves would accept him?!”

“If he’s my heir, they would have no say in it.”

“He’s not _your_ heir, Kai. He’s Adrian’s.”

“Precisely.”

“And Adrian forsook the pack a long time ago. If anything, the pack would despise Lenz, not embrace him!”

“I can’t leave my pack without handing it over to my heir, Jongin!”

That struck Jongin dumb. “You… are planning to leave.”

Kai snapped his lips shut for a second and opened them again to mutter a ‘yes’.

“But—”

“Only after we’re out of this fucking mess. As an Alpha you know how it’d feel to abandon the pack without handing it over to someone you trust. You knew you were handing it over to me when you left this town.”

“You trust Lenz?”

“As much as I hate to admit this, he is a potentially powerful wolf. Think about it, Jongin. His mother was a second tier. Lena was a golden-fur. Adrian’s a black-fur, third tier, just as me. With proper guidance, Lenz could become one of the most powerful Alphas. And if the pack realizes that I have him for my heir, they’d follow us without a shadow of a doubt.”

Taken aback by Kai’s intents, Jongin wiped his forehead, flipping his hair back. “This isn’t something I can decide on my own, Kai. This isn’t my choice to make. Both Adrian and I wanted Lenz to have a normal life.”

“He’s a fucking Werewolf. His life would never be normal.” Kai scoffed, sticking his hands into his jacket’s pockets.

“Even so, it’s Lenz’s life. He can choose the path he wants to take. And I honestly don’t know what Adrian would say about this.”

Kai finally heaved a sigh. “Fine. But will you promise me that you’ll at least consider this?”

Jongin hesitated for a second before nodding his head. “You should go home, Kai. Tell Sehun what you just told me. Give him a peace of mind.”

To his surprise, Kai did not argue. He almost looked like he was longing to see Sehun as well. “I have to meet up with Karm and some of the pack. I’ll go home after that.”

“Do you want me to—”

“No, I’ll handle it. I just have to fix up another gathering. And hopefully this time more people would stand on our side.”

 

* * *

 

“Lenz?”

Tearing the earphones out of his ears, Lenz straightened up from leaning against the headboard of his creaking bed. “Dad?”

Jongin did not bother to turn the lights on as he slumped against the doorframe. The dim light of the hallway outside exposed the thin grin that was etched on his father’s face. “Did you have with Kai, then?”

“By fun you mean explicit man-to-man talk? Yeah.”

Jongin arched a brow. “What sort of man-to-man talk?”

“You know, the cannon and the cave tales.”

“Oh.” Jongin swallowed and Lenz smirked at his father fidgeting nervously. “That should be the least of your concern right now.”

“Uncle Kai says otherwise. He thinks it’s important for me to direct my cannon at the right cave right now before it’s too late.” He mocked further to see his father flush deeper.

“Was that all that you guys did today?”

“Nope.” Lenz sat up, throwing his long legs over the edge of the bed. “He brought me to a guy called Karm’s house.”

“Did he? Did you meet Arkyn, then?”

“Arkyn, Vinn, Nadya.” Lenz smirked wider at the last name. “All of the lot.”

Jongin bowed his head a couple of times. “I see.”

“I’ll be going for a jog with Arkyn tomorrow.”

“Good.” He cleared his throat and pulled himself away from the doorframe. “I’m glad you met some of the pack.”

“Most of them… seemed like nice people.” Lenz had no idea why he had felt comfortable around them. Except Karm maybe. But Jongin surely did not seem like he liked the idea of Lenz hanging out with them as his face turned sour. However, he looked much better than earlier. Colour had returned to his cheeks and lips.

“I’m sure they are.” He smiled. “You should get some sleep.”

Lenz nodded, pursing his lips. What else could he do locked up in this house? Once Jongin had left the room after muttering a good night, Lenz sank back into the bed and tucked his hands under his head, staring up at the grey ceiling. The summer heat crept under his t-shirt and tickled his skin even during the night. He was not sure why it was hundred times hotter these days, but for most of the day, he was doused in sweat. Annoyed by the fact that he had just taken a shower and was already covered in sweat, he got off the bed and stomped over to the corner of the room to fish out a shirt from the unpacked bag. Yanking the t-shirt off, he let his body appreciate the humid air in the room. He was also vividly aware of the fact that the heat often travelled to the nether regions of his body, causing his entire body to burn with unexplainable urges sometimes. He pulled the blue and green fleece shirt on, but didn’t button it as he turned to the window. Unlocking the catch of the window, he lifted rail and almost laughed at the sudden gush of wind that struck his face with its mild coldness. He let the wind dry his body as he peered out the window. The blazing red hair that was enhanced by the moonlight stood in contrast to the rest of the forest. Lenz’s eyes were close to popping out as he leaned over the stool of the window, perking his head to ensure his eyes weren’t playing tricks at him.

Skylar was so close to the house, too close. He was leaning against one of the closest trees that bordered the driveway. Gulping the wedge in his throat, Lenz slammed the window shut and turned on his heel before racing out of the room. “Lenz.” Jongin gasped when he almost bumped into the man near the staircase.

“D-dad.” Lenz rasped, stuttering as he came to a jerky halt. Jongin cocked his brows at him.

“Where are you rushing to without even buttoning your shirt?”

“Uh…” Scratching the back of his head, Lenz racked his brain for a killer excuse but was briefly distracted by his hand in his extremely messy hair. _I probably look like shit…. What do I care?! It’s not like I’m going on a fucking date._

“Lenz?”

“It’s hot.” he muttered calmly as he brushed past Jongin. “I’m gonna get some air. It’s too hot in my room.”

“Oh.” He heard his father say behind him as he slowly climbed down the steps with total composure. Jongin, fortunately, did not loom or ask any other questions as Lenz let himself out of the house. After quietly closing the door behind him, he leapt off the veranda and started towards Skylar who was still standing by the tree with his arms—strangely gracefully—crossed over his chest. Lenz kept his strides steady and as he edged nearer, he noticed Skylar’s eyes deliberately wandering down his exposed chest and abdomen.

“For an enemy, seeing you twice in one day is a bit amusing. You’re truly smothering me.” Lenz scoffed and stopped with several feet distancing them. Skylar tore away from the tree and let his arms fall to his sides.

A sly smirk crept onto his radiant white face as he slid his hands into the pockets of his skin-tight jeans. Lenz tried his level best to keep his eyes from wandering to the parts where Skylar’s jeans were clutching him. “It seems like you are more interested than I am in fooling around.”

Lenz almost snorted at his expression. “I most certainly am not interested in fooling around with you.” he folded his arms over his chest. “What’re you doing here?”

Skylar stayed mum for a short moment before he crossed the distance between them. Halting only a foot before Lenz, he gazed straight into Lenz’s eyes. His emerald eyes stirred the blood in more than one part of Lenz’s body and Lenz clenched his jaw, but didn’t look away. Instead, he stared back at him. “Come with me.” Skylar said at last and pulled away from Lenz.

“What? Where?”

Without an explanation, Skylar started into the forest. Lenz swallowed, glancing back to the house and bit his lip before exhaling a heavy breath.

“How do I know you’re not leading me into a trap?” he asked, not expecting an answer, as he followed Skylar into the woods. His fringe fell across his eyes and he flipped it back. He should have it trimmed. The bangs fell long when compared to his trimmed and cropped hair at the back and on the sides.

“You don’t.” Skylar said and Lenz could sense the smirk in his tone. As Skylar crossed a felled tree, Lenz found himself staring at Skylar’s curvy rear. His mouth went dry when he realized he was starting to let his thoughts wander. Not wanting to ogle Skylar’s ass, he picked up the pace of his strides and caught up with Skylar. “But you don’t really care, do you?” he asked without looking to Lenz.

“No, not really.” He turned his head halfway around to make sure that his own scent was trailing him in case he needed a route to get back home. The last thing he needed right now was to get into trouble by getting lost in the woods after having followed a pretty Vampire—not to mention the Vampire wanted him and his family dead. Well, not exactly. Lenz wondered if Skylar wanted any of this at all or if he was really just abiding by his father’s orders. He had only seen the Vampire twice and yet, it felt as though he had known him for a lifetime. “How old are you?” he decided to ask after a long walk of silence.

Skylar did not answer immediately. Instead, he pulled further away from Lenz. “Why are you stinking like a wet dog in heat?”

Lenz came to a complete halt as his ears rang. “What the… What?!”

Skylar spun around with a grimace etched on his pretty face. “Push your tongue out and drool. You’d look just right.” Scoffing, he proceeded in his way.

 _Is he being serious? So much for leaving an impression._ Lenz could still smell the oceanic aftershave on himself. How could he reek like a… _wet dog?_ He buttoned his shirt up. “Well, you smell like cat’s piss. What is that you’re wearing?”

Skylar chuckled and Lenz licked his lips. He had a gentle, graceful laugh. Like royalty. God. “Something that would kill you.”

“Oh really?” he snorted. He distinctly remembered the honeysuckle fragrance that Skylar carried with him on the first night they had met. But now, he smelled like toxic. He _was_ toxic. “You didn’t answer my question. How old are you?”

“471.”

“No, I mean… you know.”

Skylar climbed up a hill and Lenz patiently trod on his heels. When they reached the top, Skylar jerked his chin to the straggles of gravestones on the foot of the hill. “21.” He answered before jolting down the hill. Lenz wasn’t sure if he was more appalled by the fact that was a graveyard in the forest of the fact that Skylar was five years older than him. He climbed down the hill while gaping at the gravestones. They were smaller than usual and Lenz realized he had never been to a graveyard after the funeral of his homeroom teacher.

“What… are we… doing here?” he kept his voice low as he walked past a gravestone.

Skylar, who had come to a standstill, blinked languidly, almost flirtatiously at Lenz who walked up to him. “Lena Prescott was your mother, wasn’t she?”

Lenz’s heart sank to his stomach. “How did you know?” He received no verbal response as Skylar glanced down at the gravestone. Lenz followed his gaze.

**LENA KIM-PRESCOTT**

That instant, Lenz unconsciously fell to his knees before his mother’s gravestone. “No… What… is this?” the words came out in a raspy whisper as he gawked at the gravestone. There was no instinct to cry and such, but his head was suddenly clogged with muddled confusion.

“This is where your beloved pack bury the members who’d forsaken their pack.” Skylar answered coolly. “Do you perhaps know how your mother died?”

Lenz looked up at him with a scowl. “She was attacked and killed by one of you.” he spat, clenching his jaw.

“Attacked, yes. Killed… sort of.” He lowered to crouch beside Lenz with shimmering green eyes fixed on Lenz. “You see... _You_ were somewhat the reason for her death.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?!”

Skylar was silent for a stretch as he studied Lenz’s face. “She was having you when she was attacked that day. She wasn’t even supposed to be there. You were both dying and at that moment, your life seemed more valuable. Even to your mother. You were ripped out of her while she was still conscious and she died on spot before she was even able to hold you.”

Lenz shot up to his full height and grabbed Skylar’s shirt by the chest. “What are you rambling—”

“You can choose to not to believe me. I don’t care. But you should know who you’re siding with over here.”

“How do you know any of this?!” he growled and that instant, he felt a familiar rush of anger and ferocity flush through him. Skylar only glared at him. “You… You’re the one who… attacked—”

“No. I was the one who ripped you out of your mother. The one who attacked your mother is your uncle’s Vampire boyfriend. The man your uncle, his brother and even your father would protect.”

 

* * *

 

The house was nothing but a confined space now. A dark confined space. Sehun kept his eyes on his palms that were resting on his lap. This entire town was suffocating him, not just this house.

He brought his head up when the door was pushed open and Kai stepped in, carrying the night with him. Shutting the door behind him, he stopped to stare at Sehun for a moment before shaking his head. “This is stupid, Sehun.” he blurted out as he pulled his jacket off and dropped it onto the couch. “What are we even arguing for?”

“I almost kissed Jongin today.”


	24. “You really shouldn’t be interested in her.”

A forsaken silence settled between them and it kept stretching with the time that was filled by the idleness of the night. Nothing moved with the omission of Kai’s unsettling and unnerved gaze. All that they were able to do after Sehun’s precipitous confession was to sit indolent and avoid each other’s eyes. What irked Sehun the most was the fact Kai was not reacting in the way he was anticipating. Sure, Sehun trying to kiss Jongin was uncalled for and was completely unintentional. But he blurted the truth out to Kai in hope that his lover would conduct himself against Sehun with revolt or at least some kind of retaliation. But all that Kai did was take his lethargic seat on the couch across Sehun and keep half of his face buried in his cupped palms. Sehun wondered if his boyfriend, his _mate_ mattered more in this conflict that demanded Kai’s full attention and leadership. It was unfair. There. That was the problem. It was undeniably unjust for Sehun to have no purpose in life other than to simply be there for Kai as a mate whereas for Kai… he was needed everywhere. It wasn’t jealousy, no. But this bothered him the most. Had he been a Werewolf, he might have been happy living and serving Kai as a mate. But he was not a Werewolf and he doubted Kai acknowledged that fact. To be honest, Kai was treating him as he would treat a Werewolf mate. Sehun was a bloody Vampire and he had his own pivotal causes in life than to just be Kai’s sideman.

When the silence began to shift after almost an hour, Sehun cleared his throat and uncrossed his legs. “Kai.” He called in the lowest voice possible and even that reverberated throughout the house before pounding in his own ears. Kai did not uncover his face as he kept his eyes on the floor. “Say something.”

He finally pulled his hands off his face and brought his head up to meet Sehun’s gaze with absolute sangfroid that Sehun was not expecting. Then he asked—in a rather hoarse voice, “Do you… really enjoy hurting me that much, Sehun?”

That completely caught Sehun off guard. His jaw dropped loose as he blinked blankly at Kai. “Wh—”

“Honestly, I’m not even mad at you.” there was a miserable hint of smile as he shook his head, rubbing his eyes with his fingers. For some odd reason, his voice was not transcending a coarse whisper. “But… why tell me?” his lifeless smile faded away as he fixed a pair of angering eyes on Sehun.

“Because…” he started but fell silent when he noticed the building rage sheening Kai’s eyes.

“Why, Sehun?!” yelling, he jolted up to his feet and that instant, his bloodshot eyes turned redder.

Sehun shot up to his feet, clenching his fists. “Because I’m not satisfied living like your lapdog, Kai! I love you. I’m happy with you, when you’re with me. I cherish every moment I have with you. You are all that I have. What about you, huh? Sure, your mate is important to you. But will you ever put me before the needs of your pack?! No! Because you’ve your priorities and I’m not on the top of the list whereas you are on mine!”

“How could you speak so selfishly?! You fucking knew that I’m born a Werewolf and that I have a pack to look after when you agreed to go out with me! Fuck, you knew that I have my own responsibilities when you slept with me for the first time! And now you’re saying that I shouldn’t put my pack before you?! I don’t! It’s you who’s thinking that way! Because, Sehun, you are fucking part of my pack, you idiot!”

“No, Kai, I’m not.” He spat through his grit teeth. “I don’t want to be a part of your goddamn pack, do you understand?! I’m not a Werewolf, so can you please fucking stop treating me like one?! If it is a Werewolf that you need in your bed, please, be my guest and feel free to fuck some bitch out there.”

Sehun almost keeled over when Kai bolted to him and grabbed him by his neck before thrusting him back until he was slammed against the wall. He felt the wall rifting upon the impact of his back. Groaning out an uncomfortable pain, Sehun pulled himself off the wall and briefly dropped to one of his knees to calm his spinning head. “I don’t get why you’re doing this.” Kai rasped, retreating a few steps. “Are you really not that happy with me?” his face wilted that instant as Sehun rose to his feet again. “Or is it that you’re still in love with Jongin? Never mind Vance’s compulsion… you really did love Jongin, didn’t you?”

“This isn’t about Jongin, Kai! This is about us! This is about you not considering my needs and my wishes!”

“I gave you what you wanted, Sehun. That’s all that I’ve been doing! Giving you everything you ask me. I left! Everything! But you’re the one who came looking for me! I almost died more than once trying to save you and I never regretted any of it. Think about it. Everything that you said a moment ago, about me not considering your needs and your wishes… I left you with Jongin. I wanted to fight my sire even if it would have gotten me killed to save you, for _your_ happiness. I came back to Jackson for you to be _with_ you. I don’t see how you can pin it all onto me as if I’ve been keeping you miserable when you’re the one who made all of our lives a living hell the minute you stepped into this town! Every single fucking problem that happened in our lives has been because of you! And now Adrian and Jongin are being targeted also because of you! You’re the root of everything that has happened and is happening! My best friend had died because of _your_ father who was after _you!_ You dragged Jongin into your shit by manipulating him and then you made me fall in love with you for who you were. Jongin and I were never the same after that. Adrian and I were turned into hybrids when we were trying to save you from your father for good. We were forced to leave town. Leave home. What fucking rights do you have to whine about your life when you’ve made all of ours a hell?!”

Sehun had heard it all before. But not this way. When Kai had narrated everything to him before, it was subtle and heavily favouring Sehun. But now, Sehun saw how many reasons Kai withheld within him to hate Sehun. And yet he didn’t. “So.” He let out, clenching his eyes momentarily. “You could have told me this ten years ago, Kai. You could have told me how much you held against me. But you didn’t. Why? Because you’d imprinted on me? If that’s the reason, then just kill me now so that the imprinting can be undone.”

“Stop it, Sehun. Stop your goddamn bullshit. Your problem isn’t with me. Your problem is with yourself because you think you’re worthless. And don’t fucking blame me or my pack for that. You’ve never really been much of a worth, Sehun. Even before you came to Jackson or started to toy with Jongin. All that you was is a puppet. You accused me of murdering Vance, didn’t you? Trust me, you were just as worthless to him, too.”

That either broke Sehun’s spirit or fired it, he wasn’t sure. Maybe a bit of both. But it most certainly sparked the brutal aggression within him and that moment, Sehun saw nothing but red. His eyes were glossed with pure anger and air rage as he felt his fangs pushing through his gums. He was almost unconscious when his fist slammed a side of Kai’s face, sending the man crashing against the side table before he jolted forward and rammed Sehun up the mantelpiece. The shattering of the mantelpiece registered to Sehun in the furthest corner of his mind as his hand unconsciously grabbed onto a stake-like wood. He pushed himself back to his feet and zoomed towards Kai with the piece of shattered mantelpiece.

“Stop it, Sehun!” Kai hissed but before he could react any further, Sehun stomped him hard on the chest, forcing Kai to stagger back until he hit the TV, cracking its screen. With one hand clutching the stake, the other rose to Kai’s shirt by the chest and Sehun yanked it, slamming Kai harder against the TV. The back of Kai’s head formed another web of crack on the screen as Kai groaned with grimace. “Fuck.” He hissed under his breath when Sehun pressed the splintered tip of the stake to his chest.

“You’re absolutely right.” Sehun snarled past his fangs, fisting Kai’s shirt. “I am worthless. But you’re afraid that you will be just as worthless if you lose the pack’s respect for you. Because without that fucking pack, you’re just as an orphan as I am. Even with a family. I now know how little I actually mean to you, Kai. I have my questions answered. But unlike you, I can walk away from you anytime I want. Even now you’re holding yourself back because you can’t hurt me, can you? Actually, Kai. When you think about it, I’m not the one with the biggest weakness here, am I? I guess that doesn’t make me as worthless to you.”

Kai’s hands came up to Sehun’s wrists before he flopped Sehun to the side and pinned him to the TV instead. Ripping the stake away from Sehun’s hand, he hurled it across the room and clutched Sehun’s shirt’s collar with both hands. “I want all this to just stop, Sehun. Please. Don’t push this any further.” There was sudden desperation in his gaze as he began to plead. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry about what I said. I didn’t mean—”

“You fucking meant every word that you said, Kai.” He shoved him back and Kai stood still with his lips parted and eyes widened. Sehun tried to suppress the anger within him, but found himself riled up all over again. “I need to stay away from you.” he panted out and started for the door.

“No, no, Sehun, please.” Gasping, Kai caught his arm before Sehun ferociously yanked it free and pinned Kai with a harder scowl. “I’m sorry I hit you. Please, Sehun. Don’t leave.” The desperation in his voice blended with a hint of sadness and guilt. Sehun had never seen Kai this sorry and desperate before. He almost gave in. And then he recalled how cheaply Kai thought of him.

“I don’t want to stay.” He spat, turning his back to Kai.

“Fine! We don’t have to stay here. We can leave.”

“No, Kai. I don’t want to stay with you.”

“Are you fuck…” he stopped himself and spoke again with calmness. “Don’t you dare walk away from me after everything that we’ve been through.”

“Watch me.”

“No!” he grabbed Sehun’s wrist and again, Sehun forcefully pulled it back before shoving Kai away. “What the hell, Sehun?! Don’t… don’t do this to me. I’ve been with you for so many years… I can’t… I can’t even imagine a life without you.”

“You really should have thought about that before you admitted I ruined your life.”

“I… Fuck this! Sehun, I want to get married to you! Move away from here. Adopt a child if that’s what you want. But I can’t do all that just yet. Please try to understand.” He was begging as if he would drop to his knees.

Sehun turned and faced Kai with a grimace. “Really? Then what? You regret the decision for the rest of your eternal life? No, Kai. I don’t want all that. What I wanted was actually a simple sentence saying that you value me more than your pack now that you’re an Alpha. But no. You couldn’t say it, can you? After all, we are enemies by nature. Only lovers by heart. You might be a hybrid, but you will always be a Berserker, wouldn’t you?” he turned towards the door. “I need some time away from you. Please… don’t come looking for me.”

Kai overtook him at lightning speed and blocked the exit before he clasped the sides of Sehun’s face. “Please.” He whispered against Sehun’s lips, pressing their foreheads together with his eyes closed as if to hide his screaming tears. “I spoke all that shit out of exasperation. Sehun, I love you with all my heart and parting with you again will kill me. You’re right. You were worthless. But as long as I’m alive, I will always be with you and not once will I want you to doubt your worthiness for as long as I’m here.”

“Let go.” The words came out as a raspy order and Kai’s eyes flashed open with utter desolation. He lowered his hands from Sehun’s face and stepped aside, hanging his head. Sehun’s heart swelled when he replayed the words _‘as long as I’m alive’_ in his head as he stepped out of the house and into the cold night. Only then did he realize this sense of short-termed love had always been looming in the background. No matter how hard they tried to be with each other, circumstances had always had their way of tearing them apart. The Cold Spider returned after many, many years. It stretched its long legs over the still heart as Sehun walked away from the house. The Spider had always symbolized some sort of despair. And now, with Kai words… Sehun wondered why his heart wished to ‘unhear’ those words.

_“As long as I’m alive.”_

_“For as long as I’m here.”_

* * *

 

“So Werewolves have been here for centuries?” Lenz asked as the idea sounded incredulous to him.

“Several generations, yes.” Arkyn flashed a lopsided grin as he grabbed onto a protruding tree branch before ducking under it. “This is our, _your_ ancestral land. I’m sure you’re all snobby and a big city boy, but don’t you feel somehow connected to these forests?”

Lenz cringed at his accusation. “Hey, I’m not a snob.”

“Sure.” he scoffed, leaping over a root. Arkyn had been strangely nice to him since the early hours of morning when they had met outside of Arkyn’s house. He had guided Lenz through the forest and as the sun reached its peak in the sky, Lenz knew he had wandered to almost every part of the forest. But although not surprisingly, Arkyn had left the graveyard out. However, he did supply Lenz with a profuse amount of details about the wolves and the pack which was really helpful for Lenz who had been kept in the dark all this while.

“Yeah. I do feel… liberated when I’m the woods.” He admitted, treading on Arkyn’s footsteps. The guy was blooming on the verge of absolute manhood and Lenz heavily envied Arkyn’s maturity and composure. “But I’m not a snob.”

Arkyn turned around to face Lenz with a smirk but kept walking backwards. His dirty-blond hair was neater than yesterday and his oversized t-shirt hid his lean body. Compared to Lenz’s bulky body which was growing tougher by the day, Arkyn carried himself like a steady cat. Chuckling a little, Arkyn ruffled his own hair at the back of his head, tousling it. “So tell me about yourself.”

“There really isn’t much to say.” Lenz shrugged.

“Dude, I heard your father is the hybrid Count and you’re telling there isn’t much to say?”

“Yeah… Well, I only came to know about that a week ago. So not much light to shed on that.” Actually, he would have been glad to talk about himself considering how friendly Arkyn was. But after what happened last night in the graveyard, Lenz understood that he couldn’t really trust anyone who smiled at him. Even so, he was not going to readily believe everything that Skylar had told him without receipts. “Hey…”

“Yep?” Arkyn turned around, heading towards his house.

“Do you go to school?”

“I graduated last year.”

“Oh.” He licked his lips. “Does your… sister go to school?”

Arkyn spun his head around to shoot him a mischievous grin. “You really shouldn’t be interested in her.”

“Why? Don’t tell me she inherited some of your father’s charming traits.”

That earned him a hearty laughter from Arkyn. “Don’t worry about my dad. His bark is worse than his bite.”

“I wouldn’t wanna test that out.”

Arkyn sniggered again. “Nad is a bit high maintenance, and I wouldn’t let you date her anyway.”

“Geez. Thanks for being so forthcoming.”

“Nothing personal.” He lifted his palms in defence. “My best friend has already imprinted on her.”

“Shit. Do I have to fight more than one person here?” he faked a groan.

“You do know that we don’t actually fight for mates like animals, don’t you?” Arkyn raised a brow, flashing a somewhat disappointed look.

Gulping, Lenz shook his head. “I was just kidding, man.” He lied.

Arkyn elaborated a little on the mating season, but with a much less vulgar vocabulary than the one Kai had used. It was clear to see Arkyn had his way with words and to make everything less awkward. He was clearly one of those people who can easily make friends. An admirable attribute that Lenz used to carry with him before he came to this town.

They walked in silence for a moment before Arkyn said, “Man, if I get my hands on that redhead leech, I swear to God I’ll rip that head off that bloody body.”

Taken aback by Arkyn’s sudden outrage, Lenz cocked his brow. “What are you talking about?”

“The leech that’s after us. Only I’ve seen him… Before it attacked me.”

Lenz swallowed the lump in his throat. Skylar. There he was admiring the Vampire while his potential friend wanted to decapitate him. Fortunately, Lenz was not expected to make a comment on that as Arkyn heaved a sigh.

“You haven’t transformed, have you?” he asked and Lenz subtly shook his head. “You will have to soon enough.”

“Uhm… I was wondering about that. I wanted to ask my dad… or uncle. But neither of them is in the mood to answer my queries.”

“What is it?”

“When will I… you know… turn?”

“Have you ever even seen one transform?”

“No.”

“Hm. Something usually triggers it. Sometimes emotions. Sometimes a normal fight in school. But sometimes you just get the urge out of the sudden. It varies for everyone.”

“I see.” He didn’t ask further questions as they reached the fence of Arkyn’s house. Lenz slowed the pace of his strides when he saw Vinn by the pile of firewood stacked on the side of the house. He had a firewood in one arm while struggling to fetch another. Lenz wondered why he would need firewood on this searing day, but the first thing he noticed about the boy was the grease-stained t-shirt that was filled with holes. It enraged him to the extent he was ready to have a fight with Karm.

Arkyn let out an exasperated breath as he effortlessly jumped over the fence and hurried to Vinn. “What are you doing?!” the way he shouted at Vinn made even Lenz wince. The boy turned to Arkyn with a shudder but did not look up.

“Dad asked me to get some—”

Arkyn cut him off when he snatched the firewood from his hand and chucked it back to the pile. Lenz carefully ducked down the fence and silently walked over to them. “I’ll get them. You go inside.” He ordered, scowling. Right now, he did not seem as friendly as he had been two minutes ago.

Frowning, Vinn raised his palms to Arkyn’s stomach and pressed them to his abs. “I can do it.” He muttered sadly with stars in his unmoving eyes.

“Look at your damn hands, Vinn!” he forcefully grabbed Vinn’s hands and Lenz was sure Arkyn did not literally mean for Vinn to _look_ at them. His palms were filled with blisters and cuts which made Lenz gape for a moment. “And what the fuck are you wearing?” Without even bothering about Lenz’s presence, Arkyn pulled his t-shirt off and tossed it to Vinn. “Could you tell Nad to come outside?” He sounded annoyed, but not as angered anymore. Vinn’s frown widened but he hugged Arkyn’s t-shirt to his chest as he blindly made his way towards the door.

When Arkyn turned to face Lenz, the younger pursed his lips, lowering his eyes. “He’s your… half-brother?” Lenz asked the obvious before he noticed Arkyn clenching his jaw.

“Yeah.” He sighed and leaned against the pile of wood behind him.

“He’s not… fully—”

“A weak pup, everyone says.”

“I didn’t.”

“Well, that’s what he is.” Arkyn’s gaze hardened and Lenz realized he was the one who had inherited Karm’s traits. “He didn’t ask to be born that way, though, did he? I wish everyone would just stop giving him shit for not being able to contribute to the darn pack.”

Lenz knew it for certain right then that what Arkyn had for Vinn was something more than just brotherly love. He did not leave a remark on it. “Arkyn?” Nadya waltzed out of the house in a tank top and shorts with her hair flowing like a waterfall behind her. Behind her was Vinn who had already changed into Arkyn’s t-shirt which looked even bigger on him. “Oh. Hi, Lenz!” she greeted with a full-fledged grin and calmly walked over to him to offer a vague hug. Lenz kept his eyes on Arkyn who pinned him with scepticism before he pulled away from Nadya’s embrace. She smelled of lavender and roses, which was wonderful.

“Lenzeloo?” Vinn whispered beside Nadya with his strawberry blond bangs curtaining half of his eyes.

“Yeah, what’s your name again? Lenzeloo Dubadoo?” Arkyn inquired before bursting into a roaring laughter.

Rolling his eyes, Lenz stepped forward to Vinn and held his hand out. “I’m just Lenz. That’s not my name. Delenz Prescott is.”

Vinn almost jumped with a start before Nadya pressed a hand to his shoulder. She raised one of Vinn’s hands to Lenz’s and Lenz shook his hand. “Oh my god, Lenz. You’ll have to come to this party tomorrow. I’m inviting you. It’ll be a great way for you to meet the kids around here.”

“Yes, you should go with her.” Arkyn added, but his smile and his eyes were on Vinn who wasn’t even looking at him.

“Really? You’re allowing it?” Lenz scoffed.

Arkyn shrugged. “I’d rather not waste my time with a bunch of teenagers in a cramped club just to chaperone her.”

“Aren’t you the most doting brother of all?” Nadya grinned before glowering at him.

“And you’re not exactly a delicate flower that will wither at a touch of a finger, are you?” he shot back.

“Well, if it’s okay with you, I can take her.” Lenz offered with a sincere smile. He needed to get out of this place. It was beginning to suffocate him and a possible date with the prettiest girl he had seen can’t be a bad idea after all.

“You don’t want to go because you want to babysit me.” Vinn complained as he raised his hands to Lenz’s chest. Swallowing, Lenz felt Vinn’s palms burn through the thin fabric of his shirt before Vinn pushed him with a lame effort. When Lenz did not move even an inch, Vinn scowled as if annoyed with both Lenz and himself. “Please move.”

“Oh. Sorry.” He stepped aside and Vinn started towards Arkyn. When he kept walking past Arkyn, the older crooked an arm around Vinn’s scrawny body with a playful smile etched on his lips before hauling Vinn to himself. When he pressed Vinn’s back to his bare chest, Vinn retaliated by elbowing Arkyn in the stomach and pulled himself away.

“You should go.” He hissed at Arkyn.

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because your Lenzeloo would like to have a chance at flirting with our sister.” Arkyn winked at Lenz. “He’s been asking about you nonstop since last night. Who is Lenzeloo, what is he doing here, why is the name so weird…”

“That’s true.” Nadya laughed. “So… can you have my number so that we’ll be able to stay in touch?”

“Oh yes sure.” Lenz blurted out, fidgeting for his phone in his pocket.


	25. “It’ll be okay.”

He could have opted for a motel, but he really did not wish to bump into any Werewolf in the town at this hour. Especially not now when he had willingly stepped out of Kai’s circle of protection. It was not as if he needed shelter to spend the night, but he’d rather not linger in a town full of egoistic wolves without any shield or filter either. That was his excuse. But in reality, he dreaded the loneliness that had yet to strike and he would very much like to keep it that way. When he realized he had run out of options, he stood on his only human friend’s doorstep and hesitated for a moment with his hand clenched into a fist. He raised it to the door, but dropped it back to his side, letting out a frustrated sigh. Just when he turned on his heel to leave, the door sprung open on its own and startled, Sehun spun around to meet an extremely flabbergasted Krystal who puffed out a breath of relief.

“Jesus Christ, it’s just you, Sehun.” she breathed out, palming her forehead. Of course she would have caught his scent. A belligerent smile took over her pleasant lips as she pulled her hair into a ponytail. “What on earth are you doing here at this hour?”

Sehun had never gotten too close to Krystal despite the fact that both Krystal and Kai were over each other and the days they had been dating. “I’m sorry. You must’ve been sleeping. Is Chanyeol… home?”

Krystal’s face wilted as her grin faltered. She seemed as though she had read right through Sehun before she scanned Sehun’s ruined state from top to toe. “Did… something go wrong?”

“I—”

“Who is it?” Chanyeol’s voice forced its way past Krystal before the man appeared in a t-shirt and racer shorts, sporting a savagely messy hair and droopy eyes which immediately awakened upon meeting Sehun’s gaze. “Sehun!” shoving Krystal aside, Chanyeol leapt onto the doorstep and hauled Sehun into a vicious embrace, laughing wildly. “What are you doing here?! I haven’t seen you in—what—two years?!”

The last Sehun had seen Chanyeol was during his son’s birthday party, which the Werewolves and Krystal’s family refused to attend. Neither Chanyeol nor Krystal had been having it easy since they started going out. Things only went down the hill on Krystal’s side when she was pregnant with Chanyeol’s child before they had even gotten married. The most piteous thing was Kai’s pack forsaking Chanyeol’s son and daughter for being half humans, half wolves.

“What brings you over, man?” Chanyeol looked cheerful as ever and Krystal’s smile suggested that she did not hate Sehun as much as she used to. Probably because she was now considered an abomination, too. Sehun wondered if she would help Jongin when the time came, and he decided that she definitely would. Jongin was her friend years before Sehun even met Jongin.

“I…” Sehun started, rubbing the back of his neck. Chanyeol’s eyes dropped his eyes to Sehun’s rumpled clothes. “I just need a place to crash tonight.”

Raising a brow, Chanyeol threw his wife a glance. “What happened to you?” he asked, concealing his smile behind the sudden frown of concern. “Hey?” he raised a hand to Sehun’s shoulder as if to comfort him. The prey comforting its predator. The irony almost made Sehun laugh.

“Kai and I…” he shook his head, looking over to Krystal who mirrored her husband’s frown.

“Come inside, you two.” She sighed and disappeared into the house, leaving the door open, but neither Chanyeol nor Sehun moved an inch towards the entrance.

“Did you guys fight?” Chanyeol inquired and his concern was the sincerest thing Sehun had encountered for a while now.

“Fight… would be an understatement.” Sehun scoffed humourlessly.

“Whoa. Did you two break up?!”

Lowering his head, Sehun bit on his tongue to force the sob back down his throat. “Something… like that… I guess.”

“No way. Sehun, are you being serious?! Why would he break up with you?!”

“No, no. He didn’t. I was the one who told him I need a break. I want to stay away from everything that concerns him for at least one day.”

“Of course, Sehun.” Chanyeol lightly squeezed Sehun’s shoulder. “Come on in. The kids are asleep, but you are in obvious need to rant. So you’re allowed to scream as loud as you wish.”

Sehun smiled at that despite the heaviness in his chest. “Thank you, Chanyeol.”

The instant Sehun stepped into the house, he realized there were far more photographs adorning the wall than the previous time he had been here. No one would have pegged Chanyeol for the photography type. And no one would have foreseen him becoming a wildlife photographer, but Chanyeol certainly did enjoy travelling often, always ready for an adventure.

“Can I get you anything, Sehun?” Krystal asked, peering from the kitchen.

“No, thank you for the offer.” He shot her a subtle smile before taking his seat on the couch. Chanyeol, cordial as ever, flumped right beside Sehun, draping an arm over his Vampire friend’s shoulders.

“So, tell me. What exactly happened between you two? And don’t worry, I’m always on team Edward!”

“Oi!” Krystal squawked from the kitchen.

“She’s team Jacob.” Chanyeol sighed. “Were you actually being serious, Sehun? Breaking up with Kai would mean… No, it sounds absurd. Everyone knows you guys are soulmates.”

Sehun snorted. “Do you actually believe in that soulmate bullcrap, Chanyeol?”

“As a matter of fact, I do.” He said with the frown returning to his brows.

“Here.” Krystal handed Chanyeol a mug and the smell of freshly brewed coffee pricked Sehun’s nose. “I’m going to bed. You guys can spend the night on the couch. Don’t disturb me.” She ordered Chanyeol with an authoritative point of her forefinger before she hurried up the stairs.

“Lady Boss.” Chanyeol scoffed, settling the mug on the coffee table before turning his full attention to Sehun. “Would you rather talk about it or… do you want to just let the night pass?”

Sehun wiped his face with his palms before slumping back against the couch. “Jongin’s in town.”

“What?!”

“Yeah. With Adrian’s son. And apparently… there’s a war in store for us. This is how it all started.”

 

* * *

 

The light of the day began to drain away as the sun sank lower and lower, bestowing the sky with a velvety darkness. Jongin recalled every moment of Adrian kissing him on the beach while the sun was setting as he peered through the window of the kitchen, gazing at the sky over the canopies of the trees.

“Hm. No-um. That wash really good.” Jongin turned his head around to see Lenz staggering on his feet as he jolted up from the chair of the dining table. “Thanksh, grandma.” He mumbled with his mouth stuffed with baked potatoes. Munching in a haste, he checked the time on his wristwatch before pecking on his grandmother’s cheek and started marching out of the dining area.

“Lenz.” Jongin called, realizing his son was hurrying for a something he was unaware of. Lenz came to a stop, still munching on the food.

“Nyeah?”

“What are you rushing for?”

Lenz swallowed the food before opening his mouth again. “Oh. I promised to meet Nadya at her place at seven.”

Jongin arched a brow. “Nadya? Karm’s girl?” he did not miss the flush that coloured Lenz’s cheeks.

“Yeah. We’re just gonna… hang around the woods.”

Crossing his arms over his chest, Jongin kept his eyebrow cocked. “Does her brother know about this?”

“Sure. I swear. Cross my heart.” He flashed a toothy grin. “Don’t worry, dad. I’ll protect my virginity. But I gotta run now.” He blurted out before racing towards the staircase. Frowning, Jongin turned to his mother who was smirking at him.

“What?” he demanded, rather annoyed by her mocking grin.

“Feels wonderful to be a parent, huh?” she scoffed. “Imagine how I would have felt when you and your brother started going out with people and not to mention how difficult your brother was with his smoking habit and oh god, he was such an impossible kid!”

Jongin’s lips stretched into a beam as he hurried to help his mother with the plates. “What other mischievous things did Kai do when were kids?”

“Oh, that’s uncountable.” She sighed dramatically. “He kicked this boy’s shin until it bled in the playground when you were around six. You ran to help that kid and all that Kai did was throw sand at the boy to make it worse.”

Jongin’s eyes bulged out. “Why did he do that?”

This made his mother smile. “Because the boy was bullying _you_. He took your toy or something.”

“He did—” Jongin stopped himself when he heard the front door slamming shut. He caught Kai’s scent at once, along with the intense anguish he carried with his scent. “Kai.” He rasped and bolted out of the dining room. “Kai?”

“Jongin.” Before he could even grasp Kai’s desolated state, he was pounced on. Jongin almost staggered a step back when Kai threw himself onto him with his entire weight and strength. “I can’t.” he gasped, wrapping his arms around Jongin’s shoulders.

Utterly taken aback and entirely shocked by the suddenness of Kai’s actions, Jongin stood stock-still for a moment as Kai crushed him in his embrace. Then he slowly curled his arms around his brother’s waist and embraced him, letting Kai rest his weight on him. He could not bring a word out of his mouth as Kai collapsed against him. Kai’s fingers tightly clutched Jongin’s hair at the back of his head and Jongin wondered if Kai had been crying. It sounded ridiculous even to himself.

“What happened?” his mother asked behind him, but Kai did not answer. Instead, he let Jongin enclasp him in his embrace.

“It’s okay.” Jongin whispered, completely baffled. He did not know what else he could say while holding Kai in this state. “It’ll be okay.” _Did something happen with Sehun?_

 

* * *

 

“Nightwalkers?” Lenz knew his scepticism was showing in the way he had laid it out. He squinted at the neon sign that stood out like a sore thumb in this sombre, funereal dark street. “Is that supposed to be funny?”

“More like literal.” Nadya replied with a smug smirk etched on her glossy pink lips. Lenz was not sure if it were just him or if Nadya did really look prettier every time he saw her. She really did the simple white dress justice, but her make-up did very less to make her look any more beautiful than she already was. Lenz knew how to appreciate the girls he had taken out and similarly, he was somewhat proud of how simple, yet captivating Nadya look. Not to mention the scent she sported. It was almost bewitching. “It’s a club run by Vampires.” She uttered under her breath as they started for the entrance. “But it’s opened to everyone now.”

Lenz wasn’t sure how he should react to this news, but he tried to keep his cool. He was glad that he had decided to go with just a navy blue t-shirt and a black leather jacket because he certainly did not want to be overdressed. “I’m guessing this friend of yours who’s hosting the party is a human?”

Nadya nodded as she slipped her hand into Lenz’s palm as they approached the bouncer. Lenz reflexively curled his hand around hers, plunging the other into his jacket’s pocket. “So long we don’t cause any trouble, everything will be as peaceful as ever.” Her smile was one of those smiles that a man would die for.

“Do you have a fake ID?”

Cocking her fade brown brows, she chortled. “Do _you?_ ”

“Yeah? How else would you get in?”

“So you’ve illegally gone to clubs before.”

Lenz pinned her with a ‘duh’ look. “Without my parents knowing, of course.”

“Of course.” she laughed. “But don’t worry. Your name itself is enough ID here.” She forced Lenz to stop before the bulky and tall bouncer who reeked of an annoyingly sweet stench that bothered Lenz’s sense.

“Newbies are not allowed in here without Viw’s consent, Nadya.” said the bouncer, crossing his arms over his chest.

“But…” a frown tugged at the corners of Nadya’s lips as she forced a pout. “I can’t exactly go in there without my boyfriend. Besides…” her tone turned a little serious. “He’s Adrian’s son. I’m sure he won’t cause any trouble.”

The bouncer’s eyes ballooned as he gaped at Lenz. “Adrian’s boy, eh? In that case.” He jerked his head towards the entrance, making way for them to walk by. Appalled and somewhat perplexed, Lenz tightened his hand around Nadya’s as they walked into the dark abyss of ecstasy and electric gaiety.

The place was almost nothing special. It was just as any other club that Lenz had been to—filled with an incredible crowd, booze and music. The only exception was the smell. The entire club reeked of the honeysuckle scent Lenz had caught on Sehun, Selvyn and Skylar. “Come on!” Nadya squealed in the frolicsome cacophony of the club before she hauled Lenz through the crowd.

He earned several dubious glances as he coursed past the dance floor and the vacillating gazes followed him until he and Nadya reached the bar counter. Releasing Lenz’s hand, Nadya burst into a laughter. “Why do you seem like you’ve seen a ghost?!” she screamed as though Lenz wouldn’t be able to hear him in this noise.

“I’m just shocked to see all these people here.”

“What? You thought small town people don’t party hard?” she grinned.

Lenz nodded, smiling himself. “Let me buy you a drink.”

“As many as you like.”

“Uhm. I don’t think Arkyn would be very happy about that.”

He let Nadya order two glasses of gin and tonic as his eyes wander across the dance floor. The club was mostly congested by youngsters, but he could not pick out the Vampires. It was a muddle of scents. “Here!” Nadya handed him his glass before clinking hers to it. “To you belonging where you belong.”

Lenz smirked and bowed his head. “To me belonging where I belong.” He took a sip of his drink as Nadya gulped hers. It took her half of the glass to start moving her hips to the rhythm of the music that blasted in the club. Lenz couldn’t help but check her out from top to bottom as he kept his elbow braced on the bar counter while Nadya began to sway her body, bobbing her head.

“Do you dance?”

“What?”

“Do you dance?!” she raised her voice, settling her glass on the counter after emptying it.

“Hell, yeah?”

Beaming dreamily, she grabbed Lenz by his jacket and yanked him towards the dance floor. This was good. Lenz needed this to feel like he was living a normal life, away from the craziness of the forest, of the pack and shit. The alcohol was obviously working more effectively on Nadya’s veins than Lenz. She whipped her hair wildly, clutching them with her hands as she sheepishly grinned at Lenz. _Fuck._ Lenz cursed himself for ogling his friend in the lewdest way possible. But it wasn’t as if he wanted to bang her or anything. He simply appreciated Nadya’s charming ways and was glad to have such a hot date. “My brother’s a shit to be completely honest. He promised to come with me tonight.” She mumbled, draping her lean, long arms around Lenz’s neck as Lenz latched his hands to the sides of her slim waist.

“He’s probably busy.”

“Busy seducing Vinn, you mean.” She scoffed, sliding her fingers into Lenz’s hair.

“Oh? So they are an item.”

“It’s obvious, isn’t it?” Lenz could taste the alcohol from Nadya’s breath on his tongue now. “It’s a pity ‘cause Vinn himself knows that he’s useless to Arkyn, who’s apparently going to be the First Alpha.”

“What would Vinn do then?”

“Probably nothing. He knows Arkyn needs a mate. A proper mate.”

Lenz wasn’t sure if it was depressing or infuriating. He decided to drop the topic and focus on having a good time. And that was when a broad-shouldered guy emerged from the dancing crowd and slid his arm around Nadya’s waist from behind. Startled, Nadya jumped to Lenz’s side and hissed the man who was scowling at her. “Who the fuck is this, huh?!” he yapped, extending an arm towards Nadya who cringed away.

“Hey, cut it out.” Lenz kept his arm steady around Nadya’s waist as he shoved the guy back by the chest.

“Wait, stop, don’t.” Nadya rasped when the stranger raised a hand to shove Lenz back. “He’s a friend, Tan.” Lenz was momentarily distracted by the figure that was staring right at them from the bar counter. Even under the hoodie, the brilliant red hair gloated its pride. Skylar wore a subtle smirk on his lips as he watched Lenz with amusement. _What the hell is he doing here?_

“A friend my ass.” He growled and tried to seize Nadya’s arm before Lenz gave him another thrust on the chest, sending him staggering a step back.

“I said cut it out.” He snarled through his grit teeth.

“Tan, he’s Adrian’s son, okay? Arkyn’s friend, my friend. Kai’s nephew. Is that reason enough for you to back off right now?” Nadya challenged him, clinging onto Lenz’s arm. Something told Lenz that this was the guy Arkyn was talking about.

“Look here, mate. We’re not dating. And I’m pretty decent. If she’s your girl, I’m not gonna touch her.” Lenz withdrew his arm from Nadya at once and raised his palms in defence.

Tan’s scowl remained, but he no longer looked hostile. With a spit, he walked away from there, balling his hands into fists. “God, he has the sense of a slug!” Nadya groaned, rubbing her temples.

Wincing, Lenz faced her. “Is _Adrian’s son_ really that influential?”

That made her laugh and roll her eyes. “You’ve no idea. Give me a minute, will you? I’ll be right back.”

“Yeah, sure, take your time.” He offered her a smile of assurance before she hurried in the direction of the toilet. Wiping his smile off, Lenz clenched his jaw and turned at once, striding towards Skylar who still held his seat and smirk. “What the fuck are you doing now? Stalking me?!”

Skylar only scoffed as he rose to his feet. “You’re just pathetic, Lenz Prescott.”

Lenz subtly shook his head, pursing his lips. “What? You thought I was going to challenge a century old Vampire just because you came up with some random shit? Why would you even think I’d believe you in the first place? Call me pathetic, Skylar Sinclair. But I’m not as stupid as you are. Know one thing. Sure, my mother is important to me. But if you think I’m going to take the word of a bloody leech like you, count me out. I don’t know what your angle is, but I swear to god if you show yourself before me again, I wouldn’t hesitate to have it out with you.”

Skylar seemed astonished, if not surprised by Lenz’s sudden eruption. “You think—”

“Find someone else to mess with, Skylar Sinclair.” Lenz fisted Skylar’s shirt as he edged closer. The tip of their noses almost brushed as Skylar looked up at him with Lenz glaring down. “I’m much stronger than you think. Fuck. Off.” He shoved Skylar back before turning on his heel.

“Wait… Lenz—”

All that Lenz responded was with his middle finger.


	26. “Sorry. Is this your room?”

“Sit down.”

Kai slumped on the bed, bleary-eyed with his unshaved jaw slacked tiredly. His eyes were filled with futile tussle of conflicting thoughts and exhausted defeat, shoulders sunk with despondency. It was insufferable to see the blood that sheened Kai’s eyes. Jongin—although bound to the man he called his husband by soul and by body—felt the suffering his brother was tacitly enduring within. For a hybrid, he might seem resigned and almost mundane. Jongin lowered to take his seat on the bed beside his brother. His own eyes tried to disown the misery Kai carried, but he couldn’t. His heart swelled with the same amount of dejection and grief as Kai’s. His hand was close to shivering as he raised it to Kai’s shoulder.

“Kai?” he called in the smallest voice. Kai kept his head hung with blood and energy drained out of him as he aimlessly stared at the floorboard. Jongin’s heart broke a little to see Kai—someone who had never exhibited this miserable side of him—hang limp like withering summer. “Hey.” Jongin turned Kai to face him by cupping his cheek and Kai unusually leaned into the touch with his bloodshot eyes closed. His stubble-lined jaw pricked Jongin’s palm. All these years, all these years. Had Kai ever yearned for Jongin’s comfort as much as Jongin had longed for his? At times when living with Adrian seemed almost impossible, at times when Jongin had felt constrained in the house, at times when he raised a fist to hit Adrian during an argument, at times when Adrian clutched his collar, Jongin stood alone with no other family, with no other support. Too alone until Adrian would let go of his anger and was ready to soothe Jongin’s. He had longed for his brother’s comfort at those times. He wondered if Kai too ever hungered for his brother’s solace. For a friend. For his soulmate. A tie that had been broken a long time ago. “Look at me.” The raspy whisper did not open Kai’s eyes that were lined with glossing tears. Simply put, Kai was devastated and not once had Jongin dreamt of seeing the strongest, iron-willed Kai crumble this hard.

“He left me.” The three words struggled past Kai’s tight lips as Jongin curled a hand around Kai’s neck, stroking his hair at the nape with his fingertips. Jongin was deeply aware of the frown that furrowed his brows. “He left me.” Kai muttered again and blinked his eyes, although keeping them low. “It was such a… stupid fight. I don’t even know why it happened in the first place.” He said, slowly with a hand clutching Jongin’s knee. “I tried… I tried so hard to keep myself composed. Then I… realized that… he has lived… for almost a century. I can’t… really mean much… to him… Not as much as what he means to me. He’s a… Vampire. His heart is not… on a leash with mine.”

“Kai—”

“I realized he has no reason to come back.”

Weak. Vulnerable. Gentle. Wrecked. Levelled. Kai was someone he was not right now. And it had been because of Sehun. Only someone that loved could ruin a man to this extent. Kai pressed his forehead to Jongin’s shoulder and Jongin went completely still with his fingers still brushing Kai’s hair by the nape. “Kai… Did he tell you… that we…” Jongin trailed off, unsure of how to finish his sentence without provoking Kai further.

“I wasn’t even mad about that.” Kai raised his head and met Jongin’s apologetic gaze. “Fuck, I trust you and I trust him enough to be certain that neither of you would betray me. But I understood… that he is insecure. Why? What have I done for him to doubt my commitment? He thinks if it weren’t for the mating, I wouldn’t even need him. He…” he fell silent for a moment, casting his gaze away. “He said that I only love him because I imprinted on him.”

“I…” Jongin started, but he was left with no words to console his brother. He was… happy that Kai had come to him. But right now, hundreds and hundreds of his own misery all these years welled up in his heart and he wished he could pour them all out. His hand reflexively slid down Kai’s neck, gliding all the way down to Kai’s chest. Jongin pressed it between the unbuttoned shirt’s plackets and felt Kai’s chest tighten beneath his palm. “I felt it.” He murmured, fixing his eyes on the back of his hand that was feeling Kai’s half-beating heart. Half wolf. Half demon. His brother waited for Jongin to continue and didn’t draw back from the intimate touch. “When your heart stopped. When you died.”

“What?”

Jongin tried to swallow the tears that brimmed in his eyes, but failed. He brought his gaze up to meet Kai’s and gulped the sob in his throat. “Before you turned into a hybrid… You died.”

“I did.” Kai whispered, lowering his eyes to Jongin’s unmoving lips.

“I felt the same pain you’d feel when your mate… when the person you imprinted on dies.”

“Jongin—”

“No, let me finish.” He curled his hand around Kai’s shirt by the chest and clenched it. “I’ve been holding it in for far too long. I never wanted that, Kai. I swear to god. I didn’t. I never wanted to ruin our relationship. I never wanted to see you something else than just a brother or a friend. While you despised me for becoming the First Alpha, I wish you’d just asked me. I would have… given it up. I don’t know… I wanted you to notice me… I wanted some sort of attention from you even if it’s a negative one. Back then, I didn’t realize why you noticing me was so important to me. I was mad… Angry beyond explanation when you started dating Krystal. Although I did love Sehun… I think I wanted to go out with him just to… provoke you.”

“Please, don’t do this right now, Jongin.” His hand gripped Jongin’s wrist, but he didn’t pull Jongin’s hand off his chest.

“I don’t blame you, I’m not saying what you did was unfair. I never would have seen you in such a way if I hadn’t impri—” he stopped himself and withdrew his hand from Kai before glancing away. “I’m now bound to Adrian. As you said, yes, Sehun does not have a reason to be bound to you even if you’ve mated with him. When I died… when Adrian changed me to a hybrid, Adrian still loved me. He imprinted on me again. Kai, I don’t think you love Sehun only because you imprinted on him.”

Kai slouched forward and buried his face in his palms, letting out a heavy sigh. “I do love him. But he doesn’t believe me. And… it’s far too easy for him to fall out of love with me.”

“Don’t say that. It’s just about insecurity, Kai. He just needs some sort of reassurance. Don’t… give up too easily.”

Kai pinned him with a baffled look. “Did you ever tell him? That you… you—”

“Imprinted on my own twin brother? No. I don’t think it’ll do anybody any good.” A part of him will always be empty. A deep abyss. A horrific hole. And he will have to live with it for an eternity. There was nothing worse than knowing he wanted something and also knowing that he can never have it. Even now, Jongin saw how Kai was looking at Sehun and it was killing him. He had never wanted to come back. Not to Kai, not to this town, not to Sehun. “We’ve both chose our own paths.” He mumbled, slipping his hand between Kai’s hands. “You chose Sehun and I chose Adrian. We will both be stupid to let go of either of them.” A faint and sad smile stretched his lips painfully as Kai lightly squeezed his hand. “Don’t let go of Sehun. It will be a miserable Forever.”

“A miserable Forever.” Kai echoed as he gazed into Jongin’s reluctant eyes. “What is your Forever like, Jongin?”

Jongin maintained his smile as he leaned his head on Kai’s shoulder. “A satisfying one.”

“A happy one?”

“And a happy one.”

“What if I were never meant to be with Sehun?”

Jongin’s head jolted up and he frowned at his brother. “Look. I’m no one to tell you that you are happy when you’re with Sehun. I tried. I failed. Sehun loves you, Kai. You can’t just let go of him without a fight.”

“Why are you doing this?” he mirrored Jongin’s frown.

“What?”

“Why do you always think that you don’t mean anything to me and that I don’t care about you?”

“You do, Kai.” He smiled. “You have a funny way of showing it but I know you do. But not just the way I want you to.”

“Isn’t me caring for you as a brother enough? Why is everyone always expecting so much from me? Jongin, I love you. Yes, I was annoyed that you got to be the First Alpha because when Adrian left, the title was mine to claim. But I never despised you. I felt threatened. But I have always loved you. You’re a part of my soul, Jongin. And…” he swallowed. “I willingly gave the other part to Sehun. Why can’t either of you see that I want you two to be happy? That was the reason I even left with Vance in the first place. So that Sehun can be happy with you. I never wanted Sehun near you at first because I fucking cared for you, damn it. And guess what? I was right, wasn’t I? I never deliberately wanted to fall in love with a guy you loved, but I knew you never loved him. Not enough. Not the way you loved Adrian or m…” he cut himself off, clenching his eyes.

“There’s no point in talking about this anymore.” Jongin blurted out, unable to endure the agonizing ache his heart suffered and shot up from the bed. “You should stay the night.”

Kai gave a faint nod before pulling his coat off.

“Kai… I’m sorry. If I hadn’t come back—”

“If you hadn’t, I never would have known this side of Sehun.” Kai admitted. And Jongin never would have known this side of Kai.

“Hey.” Kai did not retaliate when Jongin ran his hand through Kai’s hair. “Just promise me that you won’t give up on him just yet.”

“I can’t.” he sighed. “Can I? The fucking thing about knotting is that you can never let go.”

“Get some… rest. Did you… drink anything?”

Kai shook his head. “It’s okay. I’ll feed on Lenz when he comes back.”

Jongin smirked at that and rolled his eyes before turning around to leave and that was when Kai caught his wrist. Blinking, Jongin raised a brow at his brother.

“Can you… can you just… stay with me for a while?” Kai’s voice was low, but it didn’t sound pleading. Jongin heaved a sigh before sinking back into the bed.

 

* * *

 

With a pounding head and a layer of dehydrated saliva coating his lips, Lenz groaned at the stripes of brightness that poured through the slit of the blinds as he forcefully pulled his eyes open. Adverse to the cruel sunlight that murdered his eyesight for a moment, he stirred on the bed. The hangover was not as bad as it usually used to be. There wasn’t an axe planted in his skull, just a fork. His throat slightly felt like sandpaper while his eyes begged to be shut again. “Urgh…” Grunting, he snapped his eyes close and appreciated the soft bed under his abdomen and the pillow beneath his chest and face. He was aware of the blanket that covered the lower part of his body, shielding him from the piercing sunrays. Only after a moment did it register to him that his skin was bare against the softness of the mattress. His eyes flew open at once and he greeted the morning or maybe noon’s sun with a spiteful scowl. His shirtless body was lying on its stomach on the bed with the blanket draped over his waist. _Fuck._

He could barely recall the details of the otherworldly rave from last night, but he had a pretty darn good idea of what he might have been doing with Nadya with all those merciless alcohol in his system. Flipping to his back, he jolted upright to a sitting position and raked the room with ballooned eyes. His clothes were scattered on the floor and his watch was still around his wrist. He had no idea whose room this was and how he ended up half naked in someone’s bed. Lifting the blanket, he examined his lower body and was half-relieved to find himself in his boxers. But still.

“Oh, you’re up.” Nadya’s sudden remark had Lenz’s heart jumping and his eyes darted to the girl who casually sauntered into the room with a half-eaten sandwich in her hand. She smelled of soap and lavender and her hair was damp. But she was fully clothed. Her ripped jean shorts revealed her beautifully tanned legs all so well and her American flag oversized tank top did her slender body very little justice. Lenz swallowed, gripping the blanket when Nadya climbed onto the bed in a relaxed and casual way before taking her place beside Lenz, leaning against the headboard.

“Sorry. Is this your room?” Lenz was almost embarrassed at how hoarse his voice sounded, but Nadya smirked.

“Yes.”

“Oh.” He glanced to the clothes on the floor and wondered if he should reach out for it.

“Sandwich?” she held out the remaining part of the sandwich. Lenz politely refused with a subtle shake of his head.

“Did I… Did I stay out all night long?” he muttered. “God, dad’s gonna be furious.”

Nadya shrugged, taking another bite of the sandwich. Lenz couldn’t possibly express how uncomfortable it was to have the girl he might have or have not screwed in the same bed while he was very inappropriately dressed. “Last night was amazing.” She laughed despite herself, clapping her free hand on Lenz’s abs until Lenz winced. He stayed mum without a response for a moment, gnawing on his lower lip.

“I think I should get home.” He sighed at last and pushed the blanket aside before quickly throwing his legs over the edge of the bed and grabbed his pants from the floor.

“Yes, you definitely should. Arkyn isn’t up yet and dad’s not home.”

“Wait.” He stopped to glance back and Nadya with a traumatizing expression. “Your brother’s home?!”

“Don’t worry about him. Vinn said he was up all night, seducing him.” she scoffed, rolling her eyes. Lenz wondered why Arkyn would need to ‘seduce’ Vinn. Then he slightly recalled the short conversation Nadya and he had last night about them. With that came the recollection of meeting Skylar in the club before the man vanished into thin air. Letting out a loud exasperated sigh, Lenz pulled his pants on and got onto his feet. Nadya looked nonchalant as she sucked the tip of her thumb after finishing the sandwich.

“Um… Hey… Nadya…” he started, rubbing the back of his neck. He most definitely did not miss Nadya eyeing his shirtless body. He dropped his hand back to his side. “Did we… uh… did we…” he pursed his lips for a moment and scratched the back of his head. “You know… did we…”

“Wow. You actually forget things like that? _And_ ask the girl if you’ve done it?” she burst into a momentary laughter as Lenz felt the blood rush to his cheeks.

“I’m… sorry.” He grabbed his shirt and jacket from the floor before yanking the shirt on.

Nadya got onto her knees and crawled to the edge of the bed. Grabbing Lenz’s shirt, she hauled him close and buttoned the shirt up for him. “No, silly. We didn’t. You were very, _very_ decent. But I insisted that you sleep here because you were stewed as a goat.”

Lenz let out a sigh louder than intended. “Thank God.”

“Besides I think we’ll make a great pair as best friends.”

“Whoa, did I just get friend-zoned by the hottest girl in town?” Lenz smirked, pulling Nadya off the bed and to her feet by her wrists.

“Meh. You’re not my type, Lenz Prescott.”

“Did you hear that? That’s the sound of my heart shattering.”

“You should get going.”

“Yeah, I really should.” he pulled the jacket on and noticed the unsatisfied smile on Nadya’s face.

“See you tomorrow?”

“I’ll see you tonight. I don’t exactly have anything to do at home.” He flashed a toothy smile before brushing past her and storming out of the room.

By the time he reached his house, his head was completely cleared and he felt fresh as the woods he had walked through. He knew he was going to be in boiling hot water for not even letting Jongin know that he would be spending the night at Karm’s. But surprisingly, Jongin had only left a couple of missed calls when Lenz checked his phone. So it couldn’t be as bad as he surmised, can it?

He leapt up the steps of the veranda and silently opened the door before perking his head inside. No one was in sight. Sighing in relief, he stepped a foot in.

“Lenz!” the croaky male voice startled him at once and he spun around to meet his grandfather holding a shovel and a scowl down the veranda.

“Oh. Hey, grandpa.” He chimed with a sheepish grin.

“Where on earth have you been?”

“Uh… you know. Just…” he acknowledged his grandfather’s judgmental glare. “Fine.” He sighed. “I was at Karm’s. I went to a party with his daughter last night and I… conked out.”

“I figured. You reek of her scent.”

Lenz pursed his lips. “Is dad home, though?”

“Kai just left and Jongin went to take a walk in the woods.”

Nodding his head, Lenz pushed the door open again. “I’ll just—” he stopped himself when he was interrupted by the sudden rev of the cab that pulled up on the driveway. Both Lenz and his grandfather ceased all movements to gawk at the cab which came to a sudden stop. It didn’t take Lenz more than a split of a second to recognize the man who exited the cab. “Dad?” he let out as Adrian straightened his shirt before the red-haired Selvyn climbed out of the vehicle. “Dad!” Without wasting a single second, Lenz hurried down the veranda and raced towards his father who held his ground, powerful and calm as ever. His red shirt was dim compared to Selvyn’s long hair and he had the sleeves rolled up to his elbows as he always did. Except for the thick stubble that covered his father’s jaw, he looked just the same. In one piece. “You’re back!” Lenz couldn’t help but let out a laugh as he curled an arm over his father’s shoulder, pulling him into the manliest embrace he had ever had. Adrian smiled when he drew back after patting Lenz’s back.

“Someone looks like he had a fun night.” Adrian commented with a sly smile and Lenz cocked a brow.

“You can smell it, can’t you?”

“I don’t need to be a supernatural creeper to know that my son is hungover.” Something about the short smile Adrian flashed had always made Lenz feel safe. No matter how old he might be, his father had always assured him that he will always be there. Lenz only shot Selvyn a very brief glance and turned his attention back to Adrian. Selvyn looked like a smaller, mischievous, feminine version of Skylar. But unlike Skylar, Selvyn did not make Lenz’s heart flutter.

“You’ve no idea how crazy things have been. And wow, you need a shave.”

Adrian’s bearded jaw flexed. He ran his fingers through his hair and cleared his throat. “Where’s Jongin?”

“He’s not home. The woods, maybe.”

Adrian’s eyes shot to the right side of the forest at once. “Get him inside.” He laid a hand on Selvyn’s back and ushered him to move closer to Lenz. “I’ll be back.”

“Dad—”

“Just get inside.” Adrian looked to Jongin’s father and he acknowledged him with a short bow of his head before he bolted into the woods, disappearing between the trees. Lenz finally turned and faced Selvyn who was tight-lipped and expressionless. His flaming hair stood slightly over his shoulders, straight and silky. But he looked exhausted and hungry.

“Hi.” Lenz muttered and looked away grimly. Selvyn was also way shorter than Lenz remembered.

“Hi.” Selvyn replied in a low whisper.

What else should he say? _Hey, I met your hot brother. I was hitting on him until he started bullshitting about my mother. But I must say, you guys have some pretty good genes running in the family. Can I get your brother’s number ‘cause I think I made a mistake last night by asking him to get lost. Fuck, Lenz. Fuck yourself before you become a complete mess._ “You should come inside.” He said.

Selvyn swallowed.

 

* * *

 

The sunlight stroked warmly upon his cheeks as he looked up at the layers of canopies the sun penetrated. Summer seemed beautiful in this forest. Too beautiful to be cherished alone. Jongin knew he should let go. He should have let go a long time ago. When Kai left in the morning, he had told him to get Sehun back. But Jongin had never really gave them his blessings wholeheartedly. Maybe he was just selfish. Maybe he was jealous. Maybe he was just inconsiderate.

His body gurgled with a sudden hunger for blood. With Adrian gone for so long after years and years of always being there, Jongin felt empty and the emptiness was aching to be filled by the forbidden feelings he thought he had long forsaken. He never should have come back here. He never should have asked for Kai’s help. But the situation offered no other alternative.

Sticking his hands into his jeans’ pockets, Jongin sighed at the moss dusted logs and ferns he walked past. He wondered if Lenz had gotten home yet. If it weren’t for Nadya who had informed him last night that Lenz was staying at her place, Jongin might have gone berserk. Especially with a Sinclair out there, thirsting for Werewolf blood. The perfume of the wild flowers that dominated the forest’s floor was intoxicating. And past that fragrance came the extrinsic and unlooked for scent. Jongin drew to a shock stand as his nostrils flared while his eyes bulged out. Was his senses tricking him? He pulled his hands out and blinked with vacancy in his eyes.

Then he appeared. Like a lightning before the thunder. Jongin felt his heart scream in an ecstatic pain as if it were stabbed when Adrian emerged from the trees and came to an abrupt halt upon meeting Jongin and his shocked mien.

It was indeed Adrian. His eyes looked at Jongin with the same passion and love. Jongin’s lips parted as his jaw went slacking. Then without any hesitancy, they jolted forward simultaneously and the next thing Jongin knew was Adrian accepting him in his strong arms before their lips crashed. Jongin mercilessly gripped Adrian’s hair as his husband’s tongue was pressed to the seam of his lips before it was shoved into Jongin’s mouth with a remorseless force. Adrian’s arms crushed Jongin’s body with their hunger as his rough scruff grazed all over Jongin’s jaw and cheeks. No words were needed to express Adrian’s longing and desperation. And Jongin definitely did not need a verbal confirmation of what Adrian wanted right this instant.

He was jammed against a tree and Jongin barely acknowledged the impact with Adrian kissing him harder than ever. “Adrian.” Jongin gasped into his mouth as Adrian growled, ripping Jongin’s shirt apart. Jongin returned the favour by tearing Adrian’s shirt apart. When Adrian’s bare chest was pressed against his own, Jongin felt his head fall unbelievably light. He didn’t care anymore. He wanted Adrian right that instant. He helplessly exhaled a moan when Adrian lowered his desperate and hungry kisses down his neck. His prickling stubble abused the soft skin of Jongin’s neck as he sucked a spot on it, leaving his own mark behind.

Jongin did not protest when they tumbled to the grassy ground of the forest, crushing the wild flowers. Adrian flopped Jongin onto his fours and brutally yanked Jongin’s pants low. “Uh…” Jongin struggled with Adrian weighing him down as he gripped the sides of Jongin’s waist. Jongin pressed his forehead to the grass, grabbing and clenching the stalks of the flowers with his hand as he felt Adrian’s thick, swollen cock pressed in the cleft of his ass before Adrian fingered him with just spit and sweat.


	27. “Why did you come back?”

The irresistible scent of sex and passion clung to the powerful savour of nature, painting every inch of the forest with its promised satisfaction as they laid on the grass and ferns in a tangle of naked limbs and fulfilment. Jongin gently drew his husband’s hand to his face and kissed its palm before Adrian cupped a side of his face. The gold wedding band was biting cold against Jongin’s cheek as he drifted into Adrian’s soothing gaze. “I’ve missed you.” the words were hushed as Adrian spoke them, rubbing circles against Jongin’s cheekbone with his thumb. Jongin wanted to capture this perfect moment, lying in his husband’s embrace. They were once again careless and reckless, in a mess of sinful kisses and caresses. Chest against chest, lips against lips, bare and raw. He wanted the world to stop right here, this instant as the birds filled the ambience with their calm callings. As Jongin slowly drew his fingers up Adrian’s sternum, Adrian’s lips patterned into a soft smirk and when his lightly bearded jaw was cupped, he tightened the arm around Jongin’s shoulders and dragged him into a benign kiss. Jongin was deeply aware of his pants that were sagging by his hips and the lingering soreness between his thighs, which was healing all too quick. He let out an inhumane moan when Adrian’s stubble grazed his chin like a razor. Adrian broke the kiss after plastering a smile on Jongin’s face. “I’m sorry if I were… too hard.”

“I’m glad you were.” Jongin let out against his saliva-slicked lips before withdrawing an inch. As much as he wanted to hold onto this perfect moment, he knew he couldn’t. “It was like a living a nightmare. Without you. Worrying about you day and night.”

“I’m sorry.” He whispered again and brushed their lips together. “It was just… so difficult to convince them.”

Jongin was not sure if he wanted to hear this right now, but he knew it was inevitable. They could not lay here for the rest of their eternal lives. But he could at least prolong this moment of calmness. “Did you convince them?”

“I did.” A smile of pride crept onto Adrian’s mouth. Jongin shifted to rest his head on the other man’s chest. “That kid helped me quite a lot.”

“Selvyn? Is he here, too?”

“Yes.” Adrian’s fingers curled around Jongin’s hair. “But the clan is hesitant to come here.”

 

“Why?”

“Because this might have once been the land of the Vampires. But I was born a Werewolf and this is now the wolves’ land. Vampires can’t trespass. I understood that they have trust issues and it’s completely reasonable. So they only agreed to help and come here if the Alpha gives the orders—”

“I don’t think Kai is in the right state to convince the pack. He’s the Alpha, but… he doesn’t wanna look like a control freak.” Jongin brought his head up to meet Adrian’s confused eyes. “He’s… he’s a wreck right now and I’m worried that he might snap if the pack is at odds with him.”

Adrian lifted his head off the grass with an arched brow. “What happened to him?” he asked almost tiredly.

“Sehun is apparently leaving him and things aren’t looking good between them. A lot of stuff have been going on here, too, Adrian.” He bit his lip. “Too many things at once and… Kai is… he’s on the edge. I wouldn’t want to see him being pushed any further.”

“Hey.” He took hold of Jongin’s face. “We’re protecting him as well. And I need you bring me up to speed. What did I miss? And why did our son smell like a wet bacon and lavenders?”

Jongin gave a couple of fatigued nods. “I will, but… please let’s just…” he sighed. “Can we just stay like this for a while?” Adrian remained still as Jongin settled his head back on his chest.

“The smartest thing to do right now is for us to go there.”

“To that clan?”

“If the pack is not willing to listen or if Kai is not in the mood to talk to them because of relationship drama—”

Jongin’s head shot up and he glared at Adrian. “I’m not joking, Adrian. We’re asking Kai for a favour. I can’t boss him around.” he had never heard Adrian be this inconsiderate before.

“Hey, I wasn’t being serious either, okay? Don’t get on his defence.” He sat up, letting Jongin slide off him. “Don’t you see that we’re running out of time, Jongin? My family’s safety is at risk here. If the pack is reluctant, then all right. We’ll have to handle it by ourselves. So let’s just leave.”

Jongin mouth felt dry suddenly. He was home after so many years and to leave right now would be absurd. “Adrian, listen. Let’s give Kai some time to sort things out. Then he’ll be able to reason with the pack.”

“We’re wasting our time here if we know that the pack isn’t gonna help unless if the First Alpha challenges them. And by what you’re saying, Kai’s not in the position for that.” He rose to his feet and buckled his belt before picking up his shirt from the forest’s floor.

“You’re… you’re scared.” Jongin muttered, staring at Adrian who ceased all movements to stare back at Jongin. “That’s why you’re rushing.”

“Jongin.” he sighed. “If there’s one thing that scares me the most, that’s losing you and Lenz. We’re not having an upper hand by staying here. We need to leave.”

“No.”

“What?”

“This is your pack, too. Whether you like it or not, they are your family.”

“No, Jongin, I’m not. They isolated Lena. They would isolate me, too.”

“You don’t know that for sure. You’ve only been avoiding them. Why should Kai talk to them? You can do that.” He pushed himself up. “ _You_ talk, Adrian. If you can’t because you think you’ve abandoned this pack, no, Adrian. You haven’t. Prove it to them.”

Adrian’s jaw flexed. “We don’t have time for experiments, Jongin. We can either side with the Vampires or the Werewolves. You’d think being a hybrid would give you a trump card, but no. It only makes us an abomination. What’s a leader without followers, huh?”

“Adrian… what’s wrong? Why are you acting like this?”

 

“Nothing.” He shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair to neaten it. “If Kai can’t help, then we’re leaving. It’s our fight anyway. It’s not the pack’s.” with that, he started back towards the house, leaving Jongin alone to brood in among the trees.

 

* * *

 

“Tea?” Lenz held out a mug to Selvyn whose eyes were raking the entire living room as if he were caught in another dimension.

“Huh?” the boy looked up with uncertainty etched on his face.

“Do you want some tea? Oh, wait. I guess you’d prefer blood.” With a nonchalant shrug, Lenz took a sip of the tea himself before taking his seat on the armrest of the couch his grandmother was seated on.

“More Vampires in my house.” She sighed with a heavy heart, rubbing her temples and Lenz helplessly smirked at her exasperation. “Who is this one?”

“Hopefully not some pretty redhead your son-in-law picked up from the streets.” commented the old man who was standing by the doorway with a pair of judgmental eyes that were filled with pure hatred for the Vampire. Selvyn shot Lenz’s grandfather a despiteful scowl, but quickly looked away. 

“He’s _our_ son-in-law, honey.” She corrected with an annoyed smile and grandpa rolled his eyes. “Be nice.”

“Wow.” Lenz let out, shaking his head. “So you guys hate my dad?”

“Well, sweetie. He did elope with our niece once. And left the pack without a proper Alpha for a couple of years. Then we accepted him when he came back. But then he eloped with our son. You can imagine your grandfather’s infuriation.” She gently rubbed Lenz’s back as Lenz shrugged again.

“What a brat my dad was.” He took another mouthful of the tea before shooting Selvyn a glance. He wondered if it went with the clan but he was reluctant to ask this red-haired boy anything.

“It looks hungry.” said Jongin’s father.

“Oh, grandpa. Do we have some peanut butter and jampire?”

“No, but we have a neck-tarine.”

Lenz joined the old man for a round of menacing laughter before he felt a slap on his back.

“Will you two stop harassing the boy.” His grandmother hissed. “Sorry, dear. Is there anything that you’d like to have?”

“No.” Selvyn announced stubbornly. “But I’ve always wondered about something.” he fixed his eyes on Lenz. “Do you chase your own tail? Or perhaps sniff other people’s butt?”

Lenz jolted up to his feet with a clenched jaw, but his grandmother held his wrist to stop him. “Well, not really. But it seems like it’s your field of expertise, Count Dracass.”

“Your father is Count Dracass, genius.”

“Lenz.” Adrian’s voice boomed into the house and Lenz spun around to meet his fathers walk into the living room. Both looked annoyed and Lenz knew at once that they had been having it out. What the hell even? They were seeing each other after so long and they were already arguing? “Go pack your stuff. We’re leaving.”

“No, we’re not.” Jongin snapped, glowering at Adrian.

“Wait, what’s going on?” Lenz inquired, gaping at them both. “Why are we leaving?”

“Because I said so.” Adrian replied casually.

“No.” both Lenz and Jongin cried simultaneously.

“No?” he cocked a brow at Lenz.

“Why out of the sudden?” Lenz rasped.

“We’re not going anywhere, Lenz. Your dad is losing his mind, that’s all.” Jongin spat through his grit teeth.

“Finally, this is happening.” Everyone heard Lenz’s grandfather hiss happily in the background with a satisfied grin etched on his lips.

“Look. You two are not gonna argue with me on this, all right?” Adrian said.

“Hold on.” Selvyn rose to his full height. “Why are we leaving when the clan has agreed to come here?”

“Because they can’t step into this town in a huge group without the pack’s consent and I don’t think they’re getting it any time soon.”

“You don’t know that, Adrian.” Jongin snapped again. “Why are you hastening everything? You just came back.”

“Do you seriously think it’s safe for Lenz—”

“Oh my god, stop it!” Lenz exploded at last. “You two are obviously egoistic as hell! Sit down and talk it out. I’ve had enough of your dumb arguments, okay, dad? And don’t bring me into your argument and don’t treat me like I’m a baby. If you two need someone to baby over, get a new baby. Leave me out of this.” He turned around to Selvyn. “You coming?” without expecting an answer, he strode out of the house.

“Lenz, where are you going?” Jongin asked.

“To Mount Everest, dad. Where do you think? To the damn forest.”

“Wow. Your fathers actually argue like humans?” Selvyn asked as he hurried to catch up with Lenz who marched straight into the forest.

“No. They argue like every other old married couple.” He rolled his eyes.

“Were you being serious about the new baby? Because I know my brother hated me so much.”

“I was. I need them to stop treating me like a child.”

“Oh. I thought they were treating you like a lapdog.” Selvyn laughed at his own joke and Lenz came to a halt to spin around and scowl at the boy.

“Look, Dorothy Gale. We’re not friends, okay? So stop talking to me.”

“Where are we going then?”

“Well, I’m not sure. There must be some wild rabbits.”

There was a sudden silence between them and Lenz stopped to look back at Selvyn who was grinning to himself. “Oh, I was just thinking about how concerned you are for your own blood.”

“Yeah. A savage Vampire is not what I need to entertain right now.”

 

* * *

 

“Thank you. For everything.” Sehun offered a benign smile before climbing down the steps of the veranda.

“Sehun, what are you going to do?” Chanyeol asked, halting Sehun on his pace.

“I don’t know. I have to go back to my house, fetch some stuff. And then…” he looked down the driveway and heaved a sigh. “Leave, I guess. I’m not sure I wanna hang around.”

Chanyeol nodded and faintly smiled at Krystal who rubbed his shoulder. “We’ll stand by you, man. Whatever you need. Do what makes you happy.”

Sehun bowed his head. “Tell the kids I said bye when they wake up.”

“Will do. Travel around the world?”

“Yeah. Seems like settling down is not my thing.”

Chanyeol flashed a toothy but insincere smile as Sehun descended the rest of the steps. “See you when I see you?”

“Yeah.”

He had been glad and regretful at the same time as he walked away then. Glad because he had known a friend like Chanyeol. Regretful because he had not made many friends like Chanyeol. Sehun had spent almost two nights with Chanyeol’s family. It had taken his mind off Kai, but it did not make him any happy. Chanyeol had a family. Kids, wife. Kai had a family, too. His parents, Jongin, the pack, Adrian, Lenz. What did Sehun have? Kai. This was what made Sehun vulnerable and worthless, he realized.

He stopped before the closed door and dragged in the scent of Kai’s solitude on the other side of the door. With a tight chest, he pushed the door open. “Oh my…” he trailed off with his mouth hanging open as he tried to take in the chaos the house was wallowing in. “What the…” his eyes darted to Kai who was sitting on the couch, amidst the hell of discord. Nothing was spared in the living room—all shattered, torn, ripped apart.

“Why’d you come back?” the words rolled off Kai’s tongue just as lifeless as he was. He kept his eyes low, staring aimlessly on the shattered glass before him.

“You’re a fucking sociopath. What did you do?”

Kai’s head shot up and his bloodshot eyes landed on Sehun before they turned entire black, streaked with gold. “What did I do? Do you know… how… how uncontrollable it is when you’re… you’re a bloodthirsty Vampire outside with a trapped beast inside? And I’ve lost the one thing that was able to control me.”

Sehun took a step back, gawking at Kai’s greying face. “Kai, are you… okay?”

“Why did you come back?” he repeated the question.

“I didn’t come back for you.” he answered honestly, but regretted it at once when he saw Kai baring his fangs. They weren’t ordinary Vampire fangs. No. They were hybrid. Vampire and Werewolf. Sehun retreated another step. Kai’s veins began to protrude beneath his eyes and on his neck. “Kai, you need to calm down.”

“I’m trying to, Sehun.” a tear rolled down Kai’s cheek, betraying his pitch black eye. “I’ve been trying to.” His voice died at the last syllable. Sehun’s gaze fell on Kai’s fingers that were crooked like a Werewolf’s, while Kai was still in human form. Sehun heart clenched as his stomach knotted. He noticed the blackened nails as well.

“Kai, I’m not leaving. I’m not leaving you. Calm down.”

“Why are you lying?” he slammed the underside of his fist into the glass frame of the portrait hanging on the wall until it was smashed into smithereens. “I’ve had enough of your fucking lies! You never loved me! Because if you had, you never would have left me! You selfish, fucking son of a bitch!”

That was when a vigorous wind sliced Sehun’s cheek and before he even noticed it, the metal rod ran straight through Kai’s chest, sending him flying back until the metal rod rammed into the wall behind, plastering Kai against it. “Kai!” Sehun’s own life left him that instant as he saw Kai hang dead with the rod pierced through his heart. Blood oozed out of Kai’s mouth and dripped off his chin.

“Now that’s taken care of.” The unfamiliar voice and scent forced Sehun to turn around. “Nice to see you again, Sehun.” the man said in the steadiest tone Sehun had ever heard. He sported a crop red hair and instantly Sehun knew who he was.

“Raydon Sinclair.” The names only came out as a whisper.

“In the flesh, darling.”

_Nice to see you ‘again’?_

“Now, that’s a deranged hybrid you have there. I had almost become one myself some centuries ago. Ripping heads, limbs, bones apart. Killing sprees. Feeding on entire villages. Feeding on Vampires.” Raydon Sinclair remarked, smirking at Kai’s lifeless body. “But before we deal with your soon nightmare-to-be, shall we fix his little infatuation for you? Because it’s driving me crazy.” Without a forewarning, Sehun’s chest was struck by a wooden stake and as it penetrated his sternum, all that Sehun could do was gasp with his eyes fixed on Kai. The numbness outdid the pain. It was unbearable as his soul was ripped into pieces. Black oozed in. He knew when he came back to life, Kai will not love him anymore.


	28. “Good choice.”

“Where were you?” Lenz was halted on the middle of the staircase and he tore his eyes off his phone’s screen to look up to Jongin who had a dispiriting frown plastered across his eyebrows and lips.

“Oh, I was helping the redhead catch a wild rabbit and then it just got too savage and it ran away.”

“The rabbit?” Jongin’s frown eased.

“No, the redhead,” Lenz shrugged casually and mirrored Jongin’s smug smile. But he was not kidding. He lost Selvyn halfway into the forest and definitely did not bother to go looking for the Vampire. “Then I just went to get some air and grandma made me a sandwich. Did he make it back home?”

“Yes, he’s settling in upstairs. Get to bed. You look like you could use some serious sleep. I’m about to go and get some… thing to eat.”

“Dad, you don’t have to do that. I have come to accept that… you guys are… Vampires. So… But yeah, you do that and I’ll go get some sleep.” Flashing a sheepish grin, Lenz brushed past Jongin.

“But don’t worry. You’ll be grounded later for what you did last night. Don’t think you got away with it.”

Lenz stopped in his tracks and closed his eyes, clenching his jaw. _Darn it._ “I… didn’t do anything… _bad_ , dad.”

“Nadya told me how drunk you were when you passed out at her doorstep and she had to carry you inside.” He sighed.

“Oh,” Scratching the back of his head, Lenz plunged his phone into his back pocket and drew in a long breath. “Dad… seemed unnerved. He looks like a mess right now.”

Jongin’s face instantly wilted as the frown crept back onto his face. “I know,” he murmured. “He’s hiding something and… I don’t know why he’s freaking out when he’s just returned. That too with a good news. We’ve finally had something to look forward to and hope for, and he’s…” he groaned a little as his frown mutated into a full-fledged scowl.

Lenz immediately realized that his fathers were not on the best terms right now. He was not going to poke his nose into their intimate affairs any further. Giving a curt nod, he proceeded up the rest of the staircase and found himself staggering at the mouth of his room when his eyes landed on Selvyn who was unbuttoning his shirt. “Whoa, what are you doing in my room?!”

Selvyn’s head and eyes came up nonchalantly. “I was told to spend the night here.” His reply was surprisingly blatant for someone who had only conversed thus far with striking retorts and insults.

“Uh, nope. This is my room.”

“Yeah, I caught that the first time.” He scoffed, undoing the last button. Lenz’s eyes stubbornly discountenanced the urge to examine Selvyn’s young body as they remained on the red-haired boy’s incredible emerald eyes. Selvyn kept his shirt on, although unbuttoned. His sternum and protruding collarbones—revealed by the slit between the plackets of the shirt—were paper-white. His face was paler than his body and his eyes were showing the obvious signs of fatigue.

“You didn’t catch the bunny, did you?” Lenz could not help but smirk as he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned his side against the doorframe.

With a spiteful glance, Selvyn sank to sit on the foot of the bed. “Contrary to popular belief, not all Vampires are experts at hunting.”

“Or maybe you’re just a spoiled brat who was spoon-fed since you were a baby. Which was like… five centuries ago?”

“Oh like you weren’t?” he shot back.

Shrugging, Lenz sighed. “Hey, I wasn’t the one who let the bunny escape.”

“I’m a novice when it comes to hunting rabbits, I know. But let’s not forget I managed to put a bullet through your Count father.”

“I’ll make you pay for that one day.” Lenz maintained his complacent smirk, but he felt his own jaw flex. Surprisingly, he was not as vengeful as he had been before. Maybe it was because Selvyn right now reminded him a lot of Vinn and the vulnerabilities he exhibited. After all, Selvyn was here, abandoning his family and home to help him and his family. Which also seemed too good to be true. Whatever it was, Lenz was going to treat this situation with plenty of scepticism.

“Sure. But can you stop picking on me tonight? I’m really tempted to eat you.”

Lenz blinked his stinging eyes. “Not in this life, honey.” Selvyn’s head perked and his wide eyes suggested his realization.

“Oh god, I didn’t—”

“Dad went out to get supply. He’ll bring some back.” with that, he turned on his heel to leave.

“Wait, you’re going?”

Stopping in his pace, he glanced back to Selvyn who held an unreadable expression. “Why? You need someone to sleep with or a little light when you’re sleeping? Sorry, but your stench is killing my senses.”

“Look who’s talking,” he muttered, running his incredibly slender fingers through the long strands of his red hair. “You don’t trust me, do you?”

“I have my doubts. But my dad trusts you. If it were me, I most definitely wouldn’t. But then again, I think my dad’s a wiser man than I am. So… I surely don’t trust you, but apparently you’re our only hope and trump card right now. So I really, really hope that you’re real.”

“I am real,” the way he looked at him tightened Lenz’s chest. “I… I am here to help you.”

“Why? I mean… what can you possibly gain from this?”

“If you’ve lived over five hundred years with nothing to look forward to, you’d understand.”

Licking his lips, Lenz pinned Selvyn with an exhausting gaze as the younger returned his gaze. “So you’re doing this for your own entertainment… or redemption?”

“A bit of both.” He smiled and for the first time, Lenz saw Selvyn in a totally different light. His heart and soul gave in a little to the boy who had seen more than Lenz would ever see in his life. It was not fair for him to treat Selvyn as a little boy when he had five hundred years’ worth of experience.

“What did you do that bad?”

Selvyn rolled his eyes. “Please, we’re not friends, remember? I don’t share my secrets with someone who’s not my friend.”

“Suit yourself,” With that, he stormed out to the hallway before leaping down the stairs. He had promised to meet Nadya tonight and perhaps he ought to keep that promise considering the fact that he really did not feel comfortable sharing the same room, or even the same house with the brother of the Vampire he almost courted. Bursting out of the house, he met the cold summer night with disdain before his eyes darted to Adrian who was perched on the steps of the veranda. “Dad?”

His father did not respond as he continued to stare aimlessly into the night. The stubble he sported made him look years older or perhaps it was the mental fatigue that was wearing not only him, but everyone around him out. Taking his seat next Adrian, Lenz pressed a hand to his father’s shoulder.

“What’s going on, dad?” His father had never been the one to strike up a deep conversation. The man often had very little words and opinions. The only other time Lenz had seen his father this low was when he and Jongin had an almost unresolvable argument some years back.

“Nothing,” he sighed, but refused to face his son. “We have to leave. But Jongin… he wants to… stay and try our level best first.”

“Isn’t that the most optimum strategy given our circumstance right now?”

Adrian finally shifted his bloodshot gaze to his son. “I met the clan,” he started slowly. “Lenz… I don’t think… I don’t think it’s right for them to sacrifice their lives for us. I met them. They had families just like I do. And I don’t want to put them in such a dangerous situation. This isn’t their fight. Just as how this isn’t the pack’s fight either. No one has to die for us.”

Lenz’s heart sank into his stomach. “Is that why you’re so conflicted?”

Rubbing his forehead and scruffy jaw, his father shook his head. “I’m… scared. Scared of losing all of you. But it isn’t fair to expect innocent people to die for our cause.” He gazed back into the empty night.

Lenz wanted to smile at how much of a man and _human_ his father was. Vampire or not, his father was an honourable man. However, Lenz was disheartened by the fact that he could not afford help to anyone right now. Or maybe he could.

“Jongin is more desperate than I am. He would do anything to protect us. He wants to fight. Until the end… But even if we get the clan’s help, even if I’m willing to set my principles aside and let them help us, we don’t know for sure if we’ll win. I would just surrender myself, but for what gain? That Raydon Sinclair is planning to build an army of hybrids. It just feels like… I’ve run out of options. Only one left. That is to run. And hide. But Selvyn says that we’ll have to keep running for the rest of our lives.”

Lenz jolted up to his full height and marched down the steps. The undersurface of his boots pressed into the moist loam as his hands balled themselves into fists.

“Where are you going?” Adrian questioned with only a hint of concern in his throat.

“To find us more options,” spitting through his grit teeth, he stomped in the direction of the dense layers of trees.

“Lenz—”

“I need you to trust me this one time, okay?”

His father did not offer any opposition as Lenz strode into the forest. When he had penetrated a considerable depth of the woods, he broke into a sprint in the direction of the trail of Selvyn’s scent. If anything, he knew one person who might have already caught the familiar scent. Coming to a jerky halt in the middle of the forest, he gave the surrounding a grasping glance, panting a little. “I know you’re here!”

His squawk certainly did attract the forest rodents as they scampered all over the ground. “I thought you never wanted to see me again.”

The voice pierced Lenz’s ears and his heart uncontrollably jumped. Spinning around, he was met with Skylar’s well-defined face and penetrating green eyes. With a couple of vaults, Lenz’s hands seized the collar of Skylar’s grey shirt before Skylar was slammed against the tree behind him. “What do you get from destroying us?” he snarled, baring his teeth at the beautiful man who remained composed, trapped between Lenz and the tree. He didn’t trust Skylar. But for some odd reason, this animalistic connection he had established with Skylar swelled. Yes, he never wanted to see Skylar again. However, his instincts advised him to do just this. Breathing heavily with heaving chest, Lenz glared into Skylar’s eyes. “ _You_ can… help us.”

“What makes you think I’ll do that?” there was no apparent expression that Skylar gave away.

Lenz’s grip on his collar loosened. “Because you haven’t harmed me or anyone in my family even if you’ve had many chances to do so. All that you did was warn us when you hurt Arkyn. You gave my uncle a heads up while your brother gave us one. Don’t you dare tell me that you don’t have a hidden agenda behind all this.” He was just improvising as it went, and hoped that he was right. Or at least convincing.

Skylar neither looked impressed or surprised by what Lenz had surmised. Instead, his languid gaze was lowered to Lenz’s lips which were dangerously close to his own. Lenz was suddenly too conscious of how close their lips were. Skylar then abruptly shoved him away, creating a wide distance between them. “The last time I saw you, you told me that you don’t trust me and accused me of unbelievable things. And now you’re assuming that I can help you?” he scoffed. “Lenz Prescott, you are by far the most—”

“I have one family, Skylar,” Lenz realized it was the first time he had said Skylar’s name and subsequently, Skylar must have realized it, too as he tensed. “And right now, I feel like it’s falling apart. I don’t know anything about you. But something tells me you’re not what you appear to be.” He was cajoling him and he hoped it was working. Skylar stood still and stiff.

“You are deluding yourself into thinking that I’m that good of a person. You had your chance to run. I’m afraid you’ve run out of time.”

“What are you talking about?”

“My brother isn’t the only other Sinclair in town now,” he averted his gaze for a brief moment and that was when Lenz’s hand rose to Skylar’s neck. Clutching it, Lenz felt a ravenous anger rush through his veins and the back of his head began to pound. Skylar retaliated at once by grabbing Lenz’s wrist before he ripped his hand off his neck. “Don’t touch me like I’m yours.”

Dropping his hand to his side, Lenz fixed his eyes on Skylar’s scowl. “I know that you’re not a bad person.”

“How would you know that?”

“I…” he sucked in a deep breath and shook his head. “Look. I don’t know how or why… all that I could do after what I said to you last night was think about you,” that was only partially a lie. The main incentive that had drove Lenz to drinking that much was Skylar. “I just know that you’re not a bad guy.”

“You’re about to be proved wrong,” Skylar’s scowl deepened as he looked away. “I was born just like you. A Werewolf,” Lenz froze when it hit him hard. Of course Skylar and Selvyn were born as Werewolves. “Come with me.” He started to walk away and Lenz waited for a moment, staring at Skylar’s back before he hurried after the man.

 

* * *

 

Black faded into grey and grey faded into white. Gradually, the white became nothing. And _nothing_ was what Sehun feared the most. He made the wrong choice. He had made a terrible mistake. And it was too late to return. It was too late to do anything but feel remorse and live with guilt. Live… Die…

His eyes were heavy but he knew life hadn’t forsaken him. The metallic smell of blood filled his senses. His blood and Kai’s. “Finally, you’re awake.”

The voice pulled Sehun into another darkness. His vision slowly adjusted to the blackness he was met with. His chest was throbbing but it had gone numb. A prod was threatening his heart and only then did he realize that his chest was penetrated by a stake with its tip almost reaching his heart. He recognized his house’s ceiling. Raising his head, he groaned in ferocious pain and looked to the red-haired man who sat on the coffee table directly before the couch Sehun was lying on. His agonizing gaze slowly shifted to the stake that was erect from his chest. Then came a callous scoff. “Kai.” Sehun grunted but dropped his head back to the couch, purring in mind-numbing pain.

“Oh, don’t worry. He’s still… dead.” was the casual reply.

Sehun clenched his eyes and released them before looking over to Raydon. “Where’s… K-Kai?”

Raydon jerked his head to the floor and Sehun’s gaze followed. Kai was lain sprawled and motionless on the floor with the bloody metal rod resting next to him. “You know, I never thought I’d have this glorious moment of crippling—no, killing another hybrid. God, it feels so good!” he laughed. “I also never thought I would have to kill your lover one day. Although I did take an oath that no man will be with you for as long as I live.” He rose to his feet and began to pace the floor. “Now, he’s going to come back to life in a moment. And I am opting to offer you a recourse. Make a swift decision so that I won’t have to take one myself. Sehun, I haven’t killed you. But that stake is dangerously close to your heart and I wouldn’t advise you reaching for it either because trust me, I will kill you. Both of you. So, here’s my deal. Your choice. When he wakes up in a second, I will either kill you or kill him. Of course, if I kill you, you’ll have the option of coming back to life. But if I kill him, he’s dead for good.”

“Who…” he stopped himself, unable to talk. He could not think straight as his mind swam in a muddle of confusion.

“Urgh…” Kai’s soft moan rang in Sehun’s ears.

“Ah, he’s up. Three seconds, Sehun. Kill you or kill him? One, two—”

“Me, me.” Sehun panted with a bead of tear rolling down the corner of his eye. He was not fully aware of what was going on and neither was he able to perceive the situation entirely.

“Good choice.”

Kai raised his head from the floor with droopy eyes and blood-stained chin and jaw. “Se… Sehun…” was the first thing he uttered.

“Time for you to fall out of love with something that belongs to me.” Raydon’s words were sharp and determined. He curled his hand around the stake in Sehun’s chest, keeping his eyes on Kai who started to sit up. When Kai averted his gaze to Sehun, he froze—weak and vulnerable. “Trust me. I’m doing you a favour, Sehun. You have created a monster. And the last thing you’d need is for a monster to be in love with you.”

“No…” Kai rasped.

“I will you see again, my love.” with that, Sehun’s back arched off the couch when Raydon cupped his cheek before driving the stake all the way in until it pierced his heart.

“No!” Kai, despite his vulnerable state, forced himself to rise but before he could reach Raydon, the latter vanished through the front door. Sehun felt his soul being ripped into a million pieces all over again as Kai crumbled at his side. They were a bloody mess in so much egoistical love. The sky outside hinted dawn with its bruised contusion on the blue sky. “Sehun… No, no, no.” Kai yanked the stake out of his chest but it was far too late. It had dawned.


	29. “Who are you, Raydon Sinclair?”

It was his gift and his curse. Immortality. The wild mind had its way of wandering to the unachievable places. Dreams, you call them. Some called them fantasies. And for some, they were escapades. For Sehun, they were ephialtes. Inescapable nightmares. In death, the soul searched for ways to be liberated from the mortal body. Stomach lurched, adrenaline pumped. The caged spirit screamed. Darkness lurked behind him as light returned to take its honour. The world was no longer etched in charcoal as the slit of his eyes conceived the light. Boundless energy returned, strength restored and life reinstated. He felt his blood run through his veins again. His throat burned with thirst, stomach growled with hunger. He forced his eyes open.

All at once, the brightness of life attacked him as darkness forsook him. “Urgh,” the low guttural noise that drew from the pit of his stomach agonized his lungs. Clenching his eyes for a moment, he raised his head as a groan escaped from his dry and chapped lips. When he reopened his eyes, his vision gradually bettered before the rest of his senses ameliorated. He took in the catastrophe he was lying amidst. Everything was shattered around the couch he was lying recumbent in, smashed to smithereens. The house that he had carefully put together in hopes of living an eternity in here with Kai was ruined. Smashed, crushed and destroyed. He dropped his heavy head back on the couch and aimlessly stared at the ceiling for a very brief minute, allowing all of his senses to fully return. When they had, he turned his head and was met with Kai who was slouching on the couch on the other side of the broken coffee table. Sehun’s soul, only then, did it return. His heart swelled. “Kai.” His whisper brought Kai’s head up and he passed Sehun a casual and reluctant glance before dropping his gaze back to the bloody stake he was fidgeting with in his hands.

Pushing himself up, Sehun scanned his own blood-stained chest and blood-soused shirt before sitting halfway up. “You’re alive.” Kai muttered under his breath, examining the stake that had been driven through Sehun’s heart.

“Kai.” His mind turned into a blank slate. He couldn’t read Kai. He never had been able to. But today, Kai exhibited nothing but nothingness. He was a blank piece of paper. There was no concern, no affection, and no love. His face was only filled with absolute vagueness. Or perhaps it was uncertainty.

Kai heaved a sigh and looked up to Sehun. “It’s not wood.” He tossed the stake to Sehun who caught it effortlessly.

“What do you mean?”

“You would have stayed dead if it were a wooden stake.”

Sehun sat up and pinned Kai with a look of disbelief. “You’re more worried about this damn thing is made of right now?”

Kai glanced away for a moment and fixed his eyes on the shattered side table with a lockjaw. “How are you feeling?”

“Exactly how you’d feel when you come back to life after having a stake ran through your heart,” He murmured, dragging his eyes along the carved stake. “Kai—”

“Sehun—”

Their eyes met and Sehun held Kai’s hazy gaze for a moment until Kai decided to break the eye-contact. “What is it?”

Kai rose to his full height and crossed his arms over his chest. “I should warn the others,” he paused for a second and shook his head, casting Sehun with an accusing look. It was definitely not what Sehun was hoping to earn from Kai right after he had just died for the man. “I don’t understand one thing,” he said, running his fingers through his tousled hair. “He didn’t just show up, did he?” his tone was indicating a belief of culpability on Sehun’s account.

Rubbing his temples with his fingers, Sehun inhaled the morning sunlight that poured into the house. “Kai, I don’t know what you’re fishing for. I’m not sure we want to be talking about this right now, especially not after we were killed last night by that jackass.”

“Precisely. He didn’t kill us of,” he looked at his hands and stared at the blood caking his palms. “He didn’t kill us. He drove a stake through your heart, but I don’t even know what the fuck that stake is made of. Jongin said that Raydon is after us? He had his chance. He didn’t get rid of us. What’s his plan, then?” he ran his hand through his hair once again and stepped away from the couch. Sehun’s heart clenched.

“How long have you been sitting there, waiting for me to come back to life?”

“I wasn’t waiting for you to come back, Sehun,” Kai admitted. “I was waiting to see _if_ you’d come back. Which you did, so good for you. Before he killed you, he told me that it was time for me to fall out of love with something that belongs to him. You sure you don’t know anything about that?”

Sehun jolted up from the couch with a hand fisting around the stake. “Are you seriously interrogating me, Kai? I know just as much as you do!”

“Forget about it. The only thing we ever do is,” his jaw tightened. “Fight. You left. Why did you even come back?”

Sehun sighed, shaking his head. “I can’t do this right now,” with that, he started towards the staircase. “I’m going to clean myself up and… we need to tell Jongin about—”

“I’ll tell him,” Kai snapped. “Apparently, you’ve got nothing to do with this. Or us.”

Coming to a complete halt at the bottom of the stairs, Sehun closed his eyes, wanting to shove whatever that Kai had just said out of his mind. But he couldn’t. Turning around, he gaped at Kai. “What?”

“Oh, I’m not the one who said it, Sehun. _You_ did. So there you go,” his tone, his mien, his expression were all nonchalant, in extreme contrast to the blood he was covered in. “You have the freedom you wanted, Sehun. You’re free and I’m letting you go,” he said with his arms held open. “I… I have to go.”

“No, wait,” he pressed a hand to Kai’s chest and felt his blood-stained skin sting under his cold palm. “Are you… just… letting go of me? Just… like that?”

Kai gripped Sehun’s wrist and tore his hand off his chest. The harshness in it killed Sehun all over again. Kai was… he was… “No, Sehun. I’m not,” he murmured, the exasperation clear in his tone. “Not just like that. You… I have tried. And I am tired. The worst thing is that you never deserved my love. And I finally realize that.”

“Kai—”

“Look. Right now, we have bigger problems—no, _I_ have bigger problems in _my_ hands. There’s a psychopath in town and all that we know for the time being might not be true. If he’s going to kill us, he would have done it. He has ulterior motives. You… you should leave. Leave Jackson.” he turned to the door after eyeing the metal rod on the floor.

“Kai… If I leave… I’m not coming back.” it was almost impossible to wrestle his emotions. Kai did not make a reply as he ripped the door open before vanishing through it. Scrubbing his pale face with his bloody palms, Sehun leaned back against the stairs’ railing for a minute, trying to digest the fact that Kai was willing to let go. This was what he had wanted. Sehun wanted to leave, didn’t he? Then why was his heart hurting so much as if it had been staked all over again? Gripping the stake—Raydon’s stake—he dragged himself up the stairs.

Hurling the stake onto the bed—which was only used for one purpose that was to make love—he lazily shed his shirt to the floor. He halted before the full-length mirror and took in the amount of blood smeared on his body. Nothing was meant to last forever. Love did not last forever. It was bunch of bullshit—the whole love for eternity crap. It was possible for Kai _and_ for Sehun to fall out of love with each other. Sehun could fall out of love, but Kai… he never loved Sehun. And now, he could not even imprint on Sehun again. That was how worn out their love and affection for each other had become. Love was just a foggy illusion.

The water poured down, dripped by his side and drenched his hair. Sehun wiped his face, running his fingers through the clumped strands of his hair. His mind faded into vagueness as the beads of cold water trickled down his back and chest, washing the blood off them. Red contaminated the running water he stood in. He soaped himself with every thought, every emotion shoved away. His life was about to change. He was about to become lonely again. Much lonelier. He stopped. Pressing a hand to the glass wall before him, he hanged his head as the water dripped off his hair. Tears were stinging in his eyes, refusing to fall. What had been Raydon’s angle? He wanted Kai to fall out of love with Sehun. Which was a total gamble. But Raydon had been certain. So sure that Kai did not love Sehun. He helped Sehun confirm the doubt that had been haunting him for all these years—would Kai love him if he hadn’t imprinted on him? But had that been Raydon’s aim? And as Kai had pointed out, why stake him? The stake, which Sehun thought was made of wood, flashed behind his eyelids. Then it struck him.

Perking his head up, he hastily turned the shower off and grabbed the towel. Without even drying himself and with water dripping from every part of his body, he wrapped the towel around his waist and bolted out of the bathroom. The carvings on the stake. The intricate pattern was suddenly not so intricate. Grabbing the stake from the bed, he surveyed it with his stomach twisting into knots. He recalled it. He recalled it all too well.

Jolting from the bedroom and into the private library, he threw the stake onto the desk and desperately scanned the books on the shelves. “Argh!” Grunting, he yanked some books out and flipped through the pages before chucking them to the floor. He had seen the pattern of the carving before. He had seen it in one of these books. Or something like it. Then pausing for a minute, he withdrew a few steps and glared at the hundreds of books that surrounded him. Kai was surprisingly a reader just like him. Clenching his eyes, Sehun rubbed the back of his damp neck. He can’t go through all these books and all their pages. He sank to sit at the desk and buried his face in his palms.

Then he picked up the stake again. Licking his lips, he drew his fingertips along the swirly carvings. Setting it aside, he helped himself to a piece of paper and a pen on the desk before he began to sketch.

Some things just remained in the subconscious mind.

Sehun dropped the pen, staring vacantly at the paper and the design he had produced on it. He raised a hand to his mouth and clasped it. It perfectly resembled the pattern of the carvings. Raydon had a plan. And Kai was wrong. It had everything to do with Sehun.

Staring at the paper, Sehun muttered to himself, “Who are you, Raydon Sinclair?”

 

* * *

 

“Can I know where we’re going?” Lenz couldn’t help but ask the question for the nth time as they crossed another isolated road. “We’ve been walking for hours and all that you’ve said is _keep quiet._ What are we doing in town?” he looked to the sun that was rising to the sky. “Would it have killed you to drive us to the town?”

Skylar let out a loud and audible sigh, walking ahead of Lenz. “I was not kidding when I asked you to keep quiet.”

Rolling his eyes, Lenz averted his gaze to the pedestrians. “You know this place is infested with wolves. They’d know if a very red-haired Vampire is striding through town.”

“That’s where the Wolfsbane comes in handy.”

“Wolfsbane?”

Skylar did not elaborate on it as he kept walking ahead. Lenz had no idea why he was even following the man. But he knew Skylar did not mean harm. Not today at least. He suddenly came to a halt before a closed store and peered through the window with a morose expression.

“Don’t tell me you made me walk all the way here to get yourself a bling-bling gangster cap.” Lenz scoffed and Skylar looked to him, unimpressed and unamused.

“Actually, Lenz,” he crossed his arms over his chest. “I just wanted to know if you really trusted me.”

“What?”

“You’ve been following me for the entire night. What were you expecting?” Lenz searched Skylar’s face for signs of curiosity, but found none. Skylar simply looked lax. “No. Let me reconstruct the question. Were you expecting that I believe you?”

Licking his lips, Lenz shot a glance to a woman who was dragging the shutters of her shop open. “Okay. So we both have trust issues.”

“No, _you_ have trust issues. I simply don’t believe there’s good in anyone. You’d be a fool to believe that there’s one in me.”

Lenz was, however, amused by how much Skylar worried over what Lenz thought of him. He helplessly smirked, much to Skylar’s dismay. “Skylar, that’s your name, right? Listen. I do believe that there’s good in you. Just as much as I believe that you like having me around you.”

“Pardon me?” Skylar cocked a red brow.

Clapping a hand to Skylar’s shoulder, Lenz leaned in. “I really don’t care how old you are. You may be 500 years old or whatever, but you… you know that I know you never achieved what you’ve always wanted to achieve and something tells me that it isn’t to make your father proud. So,” He withdrew his hand from Skylar’s shoulder. “You know why I couldn’t despise you no matter how hard I try? I finally understand why. You’re also born a Werewolf.”

“I didn’t transform.” Skylar admitted and turned on his heel before walking away.

“Is that why you’re not a hybrid?”

“Yeah—” he halted again and Lenz almost crashed against his back.

“What are you—”

“Shit. Come on.” Grabbing Lenz’s arm, he frantically hauled Lenz into an alley.

 

* * *

 

“Adrian?”

His husband brought his head up and faced Jongin who stepped onto the veranda. The morning looked pleasantly calm. Jongin knew Adrian was holding a lot of things back and was not ready to share any of them with the man he had promised himself to. “Is Lenz back yet?” Adrian inquired casually, taking a sip of the blood from the mug.

“What? He left? Where did he go?”

Heaving a sigh, Adrian shook his head. “He’ll be fine. He’s not a kid anymore.”

“He isn’t,” Jongin surprised himself when he found himself to be agreeing with Adrian. “He has been…” he sighed. “The only one who’s able to… handle all this with composure.”

“Hm.” He lowered his head. Sighing, Jongin stepped closer and took the mug from Adrian’s hand from settling it on top of the railing. Clutching the collar of Adrian’s shirt, he pressed their lips together. Adrian’s arm snaked around Jongin’s waist as his hand cupped Jongin’s cheek. His stubble grazed Jongin’s chin and jaw as he kissed him, hard.

“What’s going on?” Jongin gasped against Adrian’s lips, breaking the kiss. He pulled away from Adrian when he heard the SUV pulling up before the house. “It’s Kai. What is he doing here?” Adrian’s hand slipped from his face as Jongin hurried down the veranda. The blood stench reached his sense before he noticed the mess Kai was clad in. “Kai?!”

He did not get a chance to question as Kai bolted towards him and straight away scooped Jongin into his arms, pulling him into an aggressive embrace. Jongin, reflexively wrapped his arms around his brother who must have bathed in blood. “Jongin,” Kai panted out with his arms curled around Jongin’s waist and lips slightly brushing Jongin’s ear. But he abruptly pulled away from the embrace as his eyes landed on Adrian who was glowering sourly from the veranda. “Adrian. You’re… back?”

“What the hell happened to you?!” Jongin rasped, gawking at Kai’s state and torn shirt.

“Papa Sinclair’s in town,” Kai groaned, hand still lingering on the small of Jongin’s back. “He attacked me and Sehun last night, but then vanished.”

“What?! What… is Sehun okay?!”

“He’s fine. If anything, he’s the only one who’s fine right now.” he answered grimly.

Jongin shuddered when Adrian grappled an arm around his waist and pulled him to his side, tearing him away from Kai. “Are you sure it’s him?” Adrian asked.

“I’m pretty sure,” Kai mirrored Adrian’s glare. “I don’t think anyone else would just randomly want a rod driven through my heart.”

Jongin’s eyes travelled to Kai’s chest. “You left Sehun alone?”

“He wants to be alone.” Kai replied lazily. “We need to talk to the pack.”

“No.” Adrian countered. “Don’t involve them.”

“What?”

“Adrian.” Jongin muttered. “Kai knows what he’s doing. If Raydon Sinclair is here, the pack needs to know.” He noticed Adrian’s jaw flex. “But you shouldn’t have left Sehun alone, Kai. I’m gonna go check on him and look for Lenz.”

“No, I’ll go.” Adrian volunteered. “You should go with Kai to talk to the pack. But… I don’t want them involved. I don’t them to fight. Because they won’t.”

“You don’t know that for sure.” Kai snapped, speaking Jongin’s thought.


	30. “Oh, and play along.”

_“Hey.” The slender fingers that ran through his hair were soothing, if not calming. Sehun’s lips trembled as his eyes fluttered open. The boy that hovered above him was smiling, but Sehun could not recognize the face. He couldn’t perceive the face, but he knew him. The guy was familiar. But Sehun could not remember him. It was day again with sunlight surging through everywhere and he was lying on a prickling lawn of grass, against a tree. “Come on, Sehun. You should eat.”_

_Who was he?_

_He was in rags as well and there was a slice of bread in his hand. As Sehun sat up, he felt a pair of warm lips against his forehead before the guy brushed his lips on Sehun’s quivering lips._

_“The forest was my escape. It feels like I had a friend. I just… don’t think he existed. But there was someone. Maybe I forgot. No, I definitely forgot. I just… go around. Playing. Making the most of the day before I had to return home only to go back to the streets and beg for food when my father decides to starve the family. I’d go home… hoping to see my sister smile… hoping that my mother would have died so that she can be put out of her misery. My father got rid of every friend that I made. I never experienced love.”_

* * *

 

Who was he?

It boggled his mind.

Stumped and completely flustered, he sat there, in the thick disarrayed scatter of utilised papers. All sheets, drawn on, inked, patterned. Perfectly designed. The swirls had no ragged edges. They were sharp, neat and authentic. As if they were spawned from Sehun’s very own fingertips. It was as if the pattern had been etched in a corner of his brain—inaccessible. The house he had carefully put together, the memories he cherished were shattered. Kai was gone. All that Sehun was left with was a string of questions with no answers. No. He had his answers. Right before his eyes. Scattered all over the floor. The pen remained idle in his hand as he vacantly read the unreadable papers. No matter how many times he drew the pattern from the stake, they were all identical. It was not as if he had only learnt how to draw it. He _knew_ how to draw it. But he had not been aware that he could draw it. Too many holes in his memory. Too many.

“Sehun?”

Tearing his eyes from the papers, he darted his gaze to the intruder that stood by the door. His chest felt an instant tug when he realized it was Adrian beneath the navy blue shirt and the beard. “Adrian!” Gasping, he pulled himself up from the floor and bolted into Adrian’s arms. “Oh, my god. You’re back.”

Adrian pressed a large hand to Sehun’s back, returning the embrace before he pulled back. “What happened here?” his eyes spoke of the shock he was in. They were wide, sheening with unnatural wisdom. Sehun could not look at them. He averted his gaze back to the papers. “Sehun? Kai told me that… Raydon Sinclair was here.”

“He was,” Sehun answered curtly, rubbing his temples. “How are you, Adrian? It’s been ages since we last met.”

“Never mind about me, Sehun,” he frowned this time, eyeing the papers scattered on the floor. “What happened between you and Kai?”

Withdrawing to the desk, Sehun picked the carved stake up. “Raydon… He killed… me last night.”

Adrian’s wide eyes widened. “Wait… Kai was… alive?”

“Yeah,” he handed him the stake and Adrian accepted it with pure scrutiny glossing his gaze. “He staked me with this. It’s not wood.”

Adrian gave the stake a once-over before his attention bounced to the papers Sehun had drawn the carving pattern on. “What are these drawings? The carving?” he held the stake up.

“Does it make sense?” Sehun wiped his forehead, scanning the papers lying on the floor before him. “I’ve been drawing them the entire morning. And is it weird that I can’t remember anything about this pattern and yet, I can draw it as if I invented it.”

Adrian stepped in and stood in silence for a long minute, gawking at the papers. “What was he like?” he asked in a low voice.

“He was… well, redheaded. A Werewolf. Hybrid. Psychopath.” He whispered out the last word. The familiarity he felt in Raydon’s presence was eerie. It was as if he had known many sides of the man he had never even met before.

Settling on the edge of the desk, Adrian drew his thumb along the carvings on the stake. “Hmm. And… what happened to you and Kai?”

Sehun shook his head. “I don’t want to even think about right now, Adrian. We’ve got bigger problems in our hands. I thought this has nothing to do with me. And I… I told Kai that this isn’t our fight. But now, I just… I don’t know what to think. These patterns… I feel like… Raydon deliberately staked me and left the stake as a… clue.”

Adrian arched a brow. “You think?” he waved the stake across the papers. “Sehun, you definitely know something about this. You sure you don’t remember anything about this… carving?”

“No. Absolutely not. I don’t know… It’s all very blurry. Raydon did say that it was time for Kai to fall out of love with something that belongs to him. He spoke with such confidence as if he knew me. As if _I_ knew _him._ ”

The frown on Adrian’s eyebrows deepened as confusion grew on his face, too. “Raydon was here. But he didn’t attack Jongin or me, seeming that he must have known that I was in Jackson last night.”

“You were here last night?”

“Yeah. I went to ask the Bahira clan for help.”

“Yes, how did that go? Are they willing to help you?”

“Yes. But…” he suddenly seemed reluctant to continue. “Why should they?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, as you said earlier, this isn’t anyone’s fight but mine.”

Sehun blinked. “Would everyone else want the world as they know it to be fallen into the hands of a sociopath like Raydon Sinclair who clearly wants to create an army of hybrids?”

Adrian pursed his lips, glancing to the stake. “Still, it doesn’t make it okay. It isn’t their fault.”

“Adrian,” he stepped forward to rest a hand on Adrian’s shoulder. “This isn’t anyone’s fault, but Vance’s. He ruined our lives. All of our lives. Even dead, he’s still ruining it.” he sighed. “Listen. I understand. You are a far better leader than Vance. People should be honoured to side by you.”

“I don’t want them dead.” He rose to his full height and stood towering before Sehun. “If Raydon wants me, then I am the one who should put my neck on the line.”

Sehun gave slow nods of his head. He understood where Adrian was coming from. If it had been him in Adrian’s shoes, he would not risk anyone’s life for his own either. “If he has an army—”

“I assume that you and Raydon Sinclair are acquaintances. So, if it’s possible for you to strike a negotiation with him…” he shrugged.

“Are you mad? The guy put a stake through my heart on our first meeting and killed my boyfriend right before my eyes. How do you expect me to strike a negotiation with him?!”

“Life’s full of miracles,” he smirked, masking the pain he carried. “Sehun, if you think you can help, then I can use all the help I can get. Jongin’s stubborn. He’s so fucking adamant and he doesn’t want to run.”

“Well, that’s one thing we agree on.” He rolled his eyes. “What did Kai… say?”

“Speaking of Kai, what the hell is wrong with him?” his expression turned sour.

“Uh… Like I told you… Raydon killed me last night when Kai came back to life. So technically speaking, he… he is no longer…” his heart clenched and stomach knotted. “He... He doesn’t… love me anymore.”

Adrian remained silent, pinning Sehun with a perplexed look. “He didn’t imprint on you again?”

Sehun licked his lips, shaking his head. “I don’t think so.” He muttered, lowering his gaze.

“What the hell… why wouldn’t he?”

“We… We sort of broke up before last night. I… I drove him over the edge and he… he seemed _broken_.” He felt his heart at his throat now. He had lost Kai. He had forced Kai out of his life. _What have I done…_

“Oh that bastard better not…” Adrian trailed off, running a hand through his hair, scowling hard. “It’s painful. When Jongin died, we had already mated. It felt like death is a better option than to go through the agony we suffer when our mate dies. But… I imprinted back on Jongin. Even if never…” he stopped himself, biting his lip.

“Even if he never what?”

Heaving a sigh, Adrian tilted his head back to look up to the ceiling. “He thinks I haven’t figured it out. He never imprinted on me. But sometimes it works that way. I can’t think of a reason why Kai didn’t imprint on you again if he truly loved you.”

“Huh.” Sehun crouched to the floor and began to stack the papers. “Guess he never truly loved me, then.”

“No, Sehun, it doesn’t function that way with Berserkers. They don’t imprint right away. He must have liked you before he even chose to imprint on you.”

Sehun shrugged. “I wouldn’t know anything about that, would I? I don’t remember anything that happened between us 13 years ago.”

“Hey,” he felt Adrian’s hand squeeze his shoulder before he realized he was aggressively crumpling the papers. Freezing for a moment, he blinked away the tears that began to well up in his eyes. “Don’t be too harsh on him. Maybe he’ll come around.”

Sehun jolted up and faced Adrian. “Maybe we’ll all be dead by then.”

“Maybe you should leave, Sehun.”

“Stop it. I was mad at Kai. I wasn’t going to abandon him or you or Jongin. Good to know you guys have always seen me as an outsider. I will never be part of your family, will I? I’m not part of the pack.” He looked away, grinding his teeth.

“Look, Sehun. If you’re going to stay to help, I will appreciate that and I will be in your debt for the rest of my life. But if you want to leave, no one will blame you for that.” He started toward the door. “It seems like you’re in quite bit of a mess. Do you need help?”

“No.” he snapped. Adrian did not make a reply as Sehun’s frustration faded away. Once calmed, Sehun turned around and met Adrian’s woeful gaze. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Looks like I’m not the only with in a sticky situation over here.”

“Adrian… If I help you with… let’s say that I was able to talk to Raydon. Would you do me a favour in return?”

“You don’t have to ask me a favour as a payment, Sehun. A favour is a favour and you’re like a brother to me. Ask. What do you need?”

“You’re the Count,” he sighed. “You can… erase our memories.” Adrian’s eyes narrowed. “Adrian, I want you to… erase Kai’s memories of me.”

“I can’t and I won’t do that.” He stated firmly. “That is not my decision to make.”

Sehun bit the inside of his cheek and looked away. “What about… my memories of him?”

“Sehun, where has that gotten you now?” he frowned. “You’re going to find yourself back with Kai no matter how hard you try to stay away from him. So, don’t let history repeat itself.” He waited for Sehun’s reply for a minute and when he received none, he sighed before disappearing through the door.

“Raydon. Raydon Sinclair.” He murmured to himself, earnestly peering at the creased papers in his hands.

 

* * *

 

“Are you kidding me?” Jongin could not help but squint at Kai.

“Do I look like I’m kidding, Jongin?” he pulled the towel away from his hair and slung it around the back of his neck before ruffling his wet hair with his bare hand. Jongin feasted his eyes on his brother’s freshly bathed and cleaned, shirtless body. Kai stepped away from the bathroom with the jeans Jongin had lent him sagging by his hips, exposing his perfect V-lines below his hard abs. Averting his gaze, Jongin shied to the corner of the foot of the bed when Kai took his seat beside him, smelling of soap and water. “He needs to learn his lesson.”

“So, you’re way of teaching him a lesson is by making him suffer?”

“He was the one who wanted to leave, right? He broke up with me. So, technically speaking, he’s the one who should suffer.” He concluded and leaned back with his hands pressed to the mattress behind him. His damp hair curtained his forehead in clumps and his thin trail of hair below his navel disappeared at the waistband of the jeans. “Besides, I just want him to realize that he loves me. That he loves me regardless of how I feel about him. I want him to come running back to me.”

“You’re insane, Kai.” Jongin jolted up from the bed. “Why are you two so egoistic? One should give in to the other.”

“Yes, I agree. So, let him give in this time.” He straightened up.

“Kai, can we get back to the Raydon Sinclair topic?”

“No,” Kai sighed nonchalantly. Jongin felt his jaw flex. How could his brother be so reluctant after everything that had happened? It was as if Kai still remained as the arrogant, snobbish high school boy. And today, it seemed as though he had been reborn. He looked fresh. He looked confident. He seemed alive. “Raydon, Schmortsdon. Who gives a damn?”

“Uh… I do.”

“The guy thinks he’s adulated and is worshipped. Guess what. I don’t happen to buy it. His cult of personality depends on how much you fear him. So far, Jongin. You and the others fear him pretty bad. I’m not gonna give a flying fuck about how scary he is.”

“Considering the fact that he killed you last night and Sehun right under your nose, you should have a reason to fear him.”

“Meh.” He shrugged his bare shoulders. “I don’t. I fear Sehun’s wrath when I forgot to get him an anniversary present more than I fear this dude. He’s… he’s presumptuous. You see, when it comes down to a fight, _if_ it comes down to a fight, I’ll fight alongside Adrian and you. But I’m not going to treat him like he’s some supervillain or anything. Because the biggest villain in my life right now is Sehun. I gotta get that boy to realize that imprinting on him is not everything.”

“Then why not just tell him that? That you still love him.”

“He wouldn’t believe me. He’d either think that I imprinted on him again or he might still be tired of me and our relationship. I’d love to give him the spunk he wanted.” The crooked smile fluttered Jongin’s heart. He did not understand the childish games Sehun and Kai were playing, but he really hoped Lenz would not turn out to be a loony like them.

God knew where Lenz was right now.

“Oh, and play along.”

“I’m not gonna play along with your charade of making Sehun’s jealous.”

“And Adrian.” He scoffed.

“Forget about it.”

“Fine. I’ll get someone else.” He stopped himself when the scent struck both of their noses. Jongin’s eyes darted to the bedroom’s door and so did Kai’s.

“Hi.” Selvyn peered into the room, paler than before, drier than ever. “Good morning.”

“What is it, Selvyn?” Jongin asked promptly.

“Uhm… I was wondering if you have like extra bags of blood.”

Jongin licked his lips, scanning Selvyn’s weakened state from head to toe. The boy looked swallowed by fatigue and Jongin had almost forgotten that Selvyn was even under the same roof. “Oh, I’m sorry. Come—”

“Hold on.” Kai interrupted as he rose to his feet, wearing a smug complacency on his face. Selvyn’s eyes instantaneously fell on Kai and his bronze body that was chiselled to perfection. “Who is this?”

Jongin stared at his brother for a second before his eyes shot to Selvyn who looked like he was slapped by a spirit. “Selvyn Sinclair.” Selvyn introduced himself in a rough tone as his jaw fell slacking.

“Hmm.” Kai hummed, pressing a hand to the doorframe before he leaned in. “I knew you’re a Sinclair. Your father had exactly the same red hair. But unlike him, you’re… _beautiful_.”

Selvyn’s eyes bulged out. “Father? You... you met him?”

“Met him… Yeah. Something like that.” Jongin almost cringed at Kai’s smirk.

“Kai.” Jongin hissed, helplessly scowling at his half naked brother.

Kai shot him a smug glance before shrugging. “Found the _someone else._ ” He muttered before turning to Selvyn. “You’re hungry, aren’t you? I’m about to get some supply in the town. Wanna tag along… Selvyn?”

Biting his smiling lip, Selvyn nodded his head, casting short glances to Kai’s chest and abs. “You must be the infamous Kai.”

“The one and only.”


	31. “Are you trying to rob a shop or something?”

His grip was powerful. But not natural. Lenz could feel the artificiality of the strength Vampires owned. It wasn’t inborn. Nevertheless, Skylar’s hand around his arm and his strong clutch quirked a corner of Lenz’s lips into a smile. The morning sunlight poured into the dead-end alley.

“Please tell me you pulled me in here to do exactly what I’m thinking you’re going to do.” Lenz sniggered and Skylar came to an abrupt halt before he glanced back with a set of eyebrows screaming in appalling shock. He immediately released Lenz’s arm and leaned himself against the wall behind him, scowling hard. Crossing his arms over his chest, Lenz tried to hide the smirk that started to widen on his lips. “I was kidding.”

Skylar licked his lips and slightly tilted his head as if he were listening to something—anything other than Lenz. “I saw Selvyn.”

“Selvyn?” Lenz’s eyebrows rose as his eyes ballooned. “Wait, why are you hiding from him?”

Skylar faced Lenz with a stoic look. “He’s with your uncle.”

It took Lenz a few seconds to realize what Skylar was talking about. It was definitely difficult to get used to the fact that he had an uncle who was his father’s duplicate. “Kai? Ah. Of course you’d hide from him. Here I thought I was going to relive my middle school years.”

Skylar blinked his eyes in surprise. “You hooked up with someone while you were in middle school? Isn’t that… too young?”

Lenz choked back on a chuckle. “Whoa. Whoever said anything about hooking up, Skylar Sinclair?”

That instant, the embarrassment that sheened on Skylar’s eyes was glorious. Lenz helplessly scoffed as he acknowledged Skylar’s humiliation. Averting his gaze, Skylar swallowed and Lenz bit his lip, eyeing Skylar’s bobbing Adam’s apple. “I was… kidding.”

“Uh-huh.” Lenz pressed his back to the wall on the opposite of the wall Skylar’s was leaned on. “What do you think Selvyn’s doing here with my uncle?”

“I do not know. It seems to me that my brother is closer to your family than he is to me.”

“He’s…” Lenz eyed Skylar from top to toe. “Charming. Yeah, my dads love him. They trust him.”

Skylar was mum for a minute before he asked in a low voice. “And you?”

“Me… what?”

“Do you trust him?”

“Apparently, I do.” He waited for Skylar to respond and when he didn’t, Lenz pulled himself away from the bricked wall and crossed the distance between him and Skylar. His hands came to the wall and he pinned them to it on either sides of Skylar’s head, blocking him. Skylar froze with Lenz leaning in so close that he could tasted Lenz’s breath on the tip of his tongue. “But my guts say that I should I trust _you._ So, Skylar.” His voice was a low growl as he spoke. His fingertips were pressed to the jagged bricks and eyes piercing into Skylar’s brilliant emerald ones. “Help me. If I’m willing to trust you, I need you to trust me, too.”

Skylar stared at Lenz as if his mouth was filled with blood. A small sigh of anxiety escaped Skylar’s perfectly pinked lips. “Get away from me.” Hissing, he shoved Lenz back by the chest and the scowl replaced the hum of nervous excitement on his face. Staggering back, Lenz felt a frown tugging at his brows. “Why do you think I’d help you? This has nothing to do with me.”

“This has nothing to do with you, huh? Then what are you doing here?” Lenz gave Skylar a light shove and earned himself a brutal retaliation from Skylar when he was jammed against the wall.

“Keep your hands off me.” He snarled, clenching his fists and Lenz quickly raised his palms in defence.

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry. Look. I’m desperate. And I… I need you.” Skylar’s anger faded at once. “To help me. You said that you… you were there when my mother died. Please tell me you feel something for… us.”

“I feel nothing, okay? I wasn’t following your mother. I was following Sehun.”

“What?”

“We had to keep a tab on him. Father’s orders. Well, until Sehun disappeared. I don’t think he remembers his days in Judland. I won’t be surprised if he doesn’t remember. Vance was known for playing mind games.” He shook his head and glanced away. “I don’t know why Sehun mattered to my father.”

“Hold on. Sehun? You’re telling me that your father knew Sehun? How?”

“You seriously think my father and I would have a fucked up relationship for over four centuries if we had heart-to-heart, deep conversations?”

Lenz pressed a palm to his forehead and exhaled an incensed breath. “So you don’t know why or how Raydon Sinclair knows Sehun.”

“I don’t. All that I do know is that Sehun was a monster that massacred an entire town under Vance’s orders. I doubt he remembers that either. But I’m sure your father, Adrian Prescott, would remember his town being ripped apart by a Vampire. Why do you think he came back running to this town that was safe with Werewolf protection? Safe was in short supply for him and his newborn son. And when he came back, he wasn’t just a cop, was he? He hunted down every last one of the Vampires who threatened this town and refused to stay in line with the damn Werewolf rules. Now you know why your last name is famous. No… _infamous._ ”

Lenz ran out of breath as he braced himself against the wall. “Then why did he… spare Sehun?”

“You know that I’m not the one who has the answer to that question. And you know who does.” He slid his hands into the back pockets of his pants as a victorious complacency took form in his expression. “You see, Lenz. The father you’re trying to protect is also a vicious murderer who killed innocent Vampires out of rage for the death of his wife, but he spared Sehun. Why? Then, there’s Sehun, your uncle’s lover, who’s just as corrupt. Kai… You wouldn’t want me to start with him. He left trail of blood-smeared breadcrumbs all over Transylvania. His orgies consisted of killing and feeding on innocent people. All these people you’re trying to protect are selfish, ruthless and heartless monsters. So tell me now.” he took a step closer. “Do you want me to help you save them? Or do you want me to help you?”

Lenz clenched his jaw, staring into Skylar’s deep green eyes. “If what you’re saying is true, if I chose to help myself and not help my family, wouldn’t that make me just as much of a selfish, ruthless and heartless monster?”

Skylar went stock-still and glowered. “Well, if you don’t take my word for it, be my guest and ask your father and Kai. I doubt Sehun would recall anything, but go ahead and provoke him. You’ll see the worst end of him.” with that, he started toward the dead-end before he stopped again. “My father has weapons. I’m not talking about old-fashioned wooden stakes. I’m talking about guns and bullets. All made of Vervain and Wolfsbane. What do you have? Some claws and fleas. Lenz, don’t you see? My father wants to put an end to you people who don’t deserve these privileges. Who’ve killed innocent lives. I don’t think he’s the villain here. He’s simply trying to prevent another Vance Vaughn from rising. I was supposed to be a Werewolf, too before Vance took that chance away from me and my brother. We don’t want a war. I assume you don’t either. So give us what we want and we’ll let you live.”

“You mean you want my father.”

“We want his title.”

“To make more hybrids.”

“Is that a bad thing? To have more of our kind?”

“That would be going against the balance of nature.”

Skylar outright laughed. “We’re the last ones who should give a damn about the balance of nature, Lenz. If you need help so bad, there’s a downworld Werewolf pack just on the outskirts of Jackson. They’re… murderous. So heads up.”

“Wait, where are you going?”

“Well, my whole family’s in town.” He announced, spreading his arms open. “I should get ready to greet them.”

Lenz lowered his head, biting his tongue before he decided to ask. “Can’t you come along?”

“Where? To meet the downworld pack?”

“Yes.”

Skylar smiled and Lenz felt a tug in his heart. “You seem to enjoy my company a little too much.”

“Don’t flatter yourself.”

“I can’t go. Bring some of your puppy friends.” With that, he vanished up the wall in the blink of an eye. Letting out a violent sigh, he peeled his jacket off as the morning heat started to irritate him.

As he started out of the alley, Lenz glanced around, searching for his uncle and a very redheaded Selvyn. When he spotted Kai’s SUV in the parking lot before the local medical center, he sucked in a shaky breath and approached Kai who was standing outside the vehicle, fidgeting with a phone.

“Ah, I thought I smelled overwhelming teenage testosterones.” He remarked before looking up at Lenz and pinned him with a smug smirk. “What are you doing in town this early?”

“I could ask you the same question.” Lenz replied tiredly, tossing his jacket into the SUV’s backseat. “Uncle Kai—”

“I am only a couple of years older than you. Cut it out.” He snarled, rolling his eyes and shaking his head.

“Ew, that’s awkward.” Lenz grimaced. “Where’s Selvyn?”

Kai cocked a brow. “How do you know he’s here?”

Busted. “Uh… Come on, Uncle Kai. I could smell him. The disgusting, nose-pricking sweet smell. God, Vampires are—”

“Found nothing.” Selvyn interrupted him as he showed up from nowhere. “Everything’s closed.”

“Are you trying to rob a shop or something?”

“Technically speaking, we’re borrowing.” Kai said. “We can’t go to the hospital now. It’ll be jam-packed. Um… Selvyn.” Lenz did not miss the way his uncle purred seductively with a lewd smirk etched on his face as he snaked an arm around Selvyn’s slim waist. He also did not miss the way Selvyn winced as if he was stung by a bee. Flustered, Selvyn hanged his head, biting his lip and Lenz could not help but make a crude remark.

“I think I’m gonna puke.” He turned to the SUV and clung onto the door.

“When I was your age, I was banging the hottest chick in school.” Kai scoffed.

“Sehun was the hottest chick in school?” Lenz retorted with a serious mien and for once, he had owned Kai.

“Ha ha very funny. I have enough supplies back home. We’ll grab some there. And Lenzeloo, your father’s looking for you. And you look like you need some serious sleep.” He turned to Selvyn whose eyes were fixed on Lenz’s. “Get in, sweetheart.” He ushered Selvyn into the front seat before winking at Lenz.

“What the hell are you doing?” Lenz hissed under his breath as Kai walked past him.

“Improvising.”

 

 

 

“Call your dad. Tell him you’re in the car with me.” Kai ordered as he pulled up in front of his house.

“That’ll be a little weird.” Lenz found himself chuckling and Kai glared at him through the rear view mirror. Clearing his throat, Lenz unlatched the door. “I’ll call him later.”

“Selvyn. Come inside. You should meet my boyfriend. Oh, _ex_ -boyfriend. He’s the biggest drama queen of all time.” Kai sighed, shaking his head before he exited the vehicle.

“Ex?” Lenz inquired, treading on Kai’s footsteps as Kai fished the keys out of his pocket. “What happened?”

“They broke up.” Selvyn whispered beside him. “Apparently, my father paid them a visit and drove a metal rod through his heart before staking his boyfriend dead.”

Lenz came to a halt to gape at Selvyn with wide eyes. “You’re… joking, right?”

“Nope, he isn’t.” Kai muttered, leaping up the steps of his house before unlocking the door.

“How?” Lenz asked Selvyn who seemed more than pleased to engage in a conversation with Lenz. In a _normal_ conversation that was.

“I heard that my father just came out of nowhere and threatened to kill him and—”

“You do realize that either one of you is going to be orphaned when this is all over, right?” Kai commented with a sheepish grin on his face as he pushed the door open. “You’re welcome.”

“You’re such a jerk.” Lenz whispered, marching up the steps but he was blocked by Kai’s arm when Kai raised his hand to the doorframe.

“A secret between us. I almost did your mother, too.”

Lenz curled his hand into a fist to punch Kai’s teeth in, but then he realized Kai was not insulting him. “You what?!”

“What can I say? I’m a charmer. And everyone loves me. And I can easily move on.” He turned around and faced the entrance with a widened smirk. “Can’t I, Sehun?”

Lenz’s gaze immediately followed and he went still as he faced Sehun who stood amidst a discord of a house, staring at Kai in either shock or morose. Maybe both. His breath began to quicken.

“Don’t worry. I’m not here to win you back or sweep you off your feet. In fact, I’m just here to grab some blood bags and then I’m off.” Kai nonchalantly spat before he jolted past Sehun, bumping against Sehun’s shoulder as if Sehun was an inanimate object. “Oh, and Sehun. Meet Selvyn. Looks like you’re not only pretty Vampire in town anymore.” With that, he bolted out of the living room. Or it was the living room, Lenz thought.

“What on earth happened here?” he let out, gaping at the ruins.

“Who’s this?” Sehun asked, jerking his chin at Selvyn.

“Another Sinclair. If you can’t already tell by the hair.”

“Oh, god.” Sehun sighed, rubbing his temples. “Is Kai trying to make me jealous with this redhead?”

Lenz pursed his lips and shrugged. “I won’t be surprised if he is. Did Raydon do all this?”

“Uhm… No. A mad Kai did all this actually. Give me a moment. I need to have a word with him.” Sehun sighed before he zoomed out of the place, toward the basement.

“Lenz?” Selvyn called in the tiniest voice and Lenz found himself giving the boy his entire attention. “That is Sehun?” he whispered.

“Yeah, why?”

“Isn’t he the one from the Judland massacre?”

Lenz’s heart sank to his stomach. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“No, of course. I… I might have mistaken.” He shook his head. “I’ll wait outside.”

“Uh, hey, Selvyn.”

“Sel would do.” He smiled.

“Sel. Uh, well… Once I’ve gotten some sleep and something to eat, do you wanna… go somewhere? And hopefully tell me something about the weapons… like the gun you used?”

Selvyn scoffed and snickered. “Sure. If my father’s in town, my brother should be, too. And he’d know where to get those weapons.”

“You don’t say.” Lenz gripped his fists and tightened his jaw. Bastard Skylar. He wanted Lenz to look for him again. “If we can’t get our hands on your brother, then what?”

“Well… I don’t know. My brother won’t help us of course. But we could tie to him a tree and beat the truth out of him.”

“Wow. There’s so much violence in that little body of yours.”

“I’m older than you.”

Lenz turned his concentration to the shattered coffee table. “No one’s gonna believe that.” But he surely loved the idea of tying Skylar down. But first, he needed to pay a visit to the downworld pack. Certainly Arkyn and Nadya would be able to help with that.


	32. “Why do you want to meet them anyway?”

“Kai,” he found the man in the basement, scavenging from the refrigerator. Sehun stopped at the bottom of the stairs and crossed his arms over his chest, biting his lip as Kai ignored his call, tossing blood bags into the duffel bag on the floor. “Are you seriously snubbing me? Real mature of you, Kai.”

Kai dropped a blood bag into the duffel bag and paused to grip the edge of the freezer, scowling at the foggy steams that fumed from the ice-cold refrigerator. “Well, according to you, I _am_ immature, aren’t I? So, why does it matter?”

Sehun was glad for the fact that Kai was at least interested in bickering back. “Kai, I found something this morning.”

“That you’re an uptight bitch and you’re gonna end up living with a bunch of uptight cats?” Kai uttered under his breath, but it wasn’t as if he didn’t know Sehun would be able to hear it. Sehun’s jaw went slacking as Kai returned to rummaging through the refrigerator. It had been some while—no, a long while since he had a puerile argument with Kai.

“So much for eternal love, huh.” Sehun couldn’t help but scoff and Kai remained indifferent as he slammed the refrigerator shut before zipping up the duffel bag.

“Good luck with your life, Sehun.” slinging the bag over his shoulder, Kai started towards the stairs and Sehun blocked his path, pressing a palm to Kai’s chest. Kai took a staggering step back as if he had been stung by a hot iron. Sehun felt his heart sinking to the pit of his stomach as he cleared his throat, hanging his head.

“So, that’s it, then?”

“That’s it.” he spat, glaring into Sehun’s stubborn eyes. “You know, you always wanted to know what kind of person I was before I fell in love with you because you don’t remember. Well, you’re looking at him. This is the guy that couldn’t care less about people. This is the guy that put his happiness above everything else. You literally have no idea how much of _you_ is etched all over me. How much you’ve changed me. How many parts of this _Kai_ screams _you._ But I’m getting over you, Sehun. Because you can never value what you already have. Fine by me. You can suffer with your loss.”

Those words hurt worse than a stake to his heart. Sehun struggled to keep a straight face as he spoke. “So, that’s how it’s going to be. You’re moving on. Why? Because you never really loved me. You were only with me because you imprinted on me.”

“You think what you want to think, Sehun. I am done giving two fucks about what you think because you know what. You’re screwed up in the head. Right now, I need to help my brother’s family. Then I’m going to be the Alpha my pack deserves. With no extra baggage.” Sehun noted that _he_ was the _extra baggage._ “But first, I’m gonna get wasted and get laid. It’ll be great for you if you left before Redhead Daddy shows up again.”

Swallowing, Sehun ground his teeth, trying to lour hard, but he was just too exhausted—emotionally exhausted. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“What?” Kai arched a brow.

“I found some leads. The stake. I’m—”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. I’m not sure if you already know this, but you are one indecisive pain in the neck.”

Sehun had to blink a couple of times and gulp the sob in his throat. Was it really Kai who was talking to him? Kai was infamous for his spontaneous unsociable incivility, but he had never been this blunt and blatant to Sehun prior to this. Had he really fallen out of love for Sehun? Had he never felt even an ounce of affection for him?

“You want to leave, then you don’t want to leave. You broke up with me, then you keep asking me if this is really happening. What is wrong with you, Sehun?”

Every single word was like a slap to his face. Sehun averted his gaze, unable to face Kai straight. “Stop it. Why are you doing this? If you no longer love me, fine. Message received. You don’t need to hurt me like this, Kai. Because I sure as hell still love you.” he swallowed the tears and met Kai’s surprised gaze.

Dropping the duffel bag to the ground, Kai grabbed Sehun’s shirt by the chest before shoving him back until Sehun was aggressively pinned against the wall next to the staircase. “Quit playing games with me, Sehun.” he growled, baring his teeth and fisting the shirt’s collar. His vicious gaze was penetrating Sehun’s eyes and he was snarling against Sehun’s parted lips.

“I’m not playing games, Kai. I made a mistake. A huge one.” He muttered with a tight chest. “I never should have questioned your love for me. Because right now, I really wish I didn’t know the answer.”

Kai’s grip loosened around his shirt as his glower faltered. “Would it have been so bad if I fell in love with you because I imprinted on you? I _chose_ to imprint on _you_ , Sehun. I wanted you. Why can’t you…” he trailed off, lowering his eyes.

“I never left you for good, Kai. I just needed a break to let off some steam.” He mustered the courage to raise a palm to Kai’s face and cupped his cheek. Kai was unmoving under his touch and he kept his gaze lowered as he pinned a hand to the wall by the side of Sehun’s head. Licking his lips, Sehun lightly pressed a palm to Kai’s abs. Oh, how much he had missed this. This tranquillity and tenderness Kai and he rarely shared. And _never_ shared whenever they were around Kai’s pack or family. The basement was one of the very few quiet, salvageable spots in the house right now. Its dank ambience added to the dungeonesque aura.

“I’m too tired, Sehun.” Kai sighed, thumbing Sehun’s chin as his hand faintly lingered on Sehun’s neck. “Really tired. I want to give us another shot. But I don’t want to if you’re going to keep thinking that I love you because I imprinted on you. And to be completely honest, I don’t want to focus on this right now. I want to be there for my brother and his family. So, let’s just take the break you wanted. Let’s just say Raydon Sinclair did us both a favour.” He brushed his thumb along the seam of Sehun’s ripened lips.

“So… Do you still… Do you still want to be with me?”

“I don’t know.” He dropped his hands to his sides before pulling away from Sehun. “Like I said, let’s take a break. You obviously need to sort things out and we’ll only wear each other out if we’re next to each other.”

“We’re supposed to aid each other, Kai. Be each other’s strength.”

“Do you seriously believe that, Sehun?” Kai retreated another step. “You are my strength. But right now, you’re my biggest weakness.”

Sehun nodded his head with his lips pursed tightly. Kai threw the duffel bag over his shoulder again before turning to the stairs. “Kai.”

Coming to halt, Kai waited without turning around to face Sehun.

“Last night, you… you were…” he didn’t know how to put it into the right words. “I don’t know. If Raydon hadn’t…” he stuttered. “K-killed you, you would have…”

Kai turned and faced Sehun with a pair of cocked eyebrows. “What?”

“ _What?_ What do you mean _what?_ Kai, you were… berserk and I mean literally. It wasn’t like you. You looked like a… monster.”

“Now that’s a great way of winning your boyfriend back.” he snorted and smirked as if he found it amusing.

“Kai, I’m not joking!”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Sehun. Yes, I was sad when you came home. Actually the details are a bit blurry, but a monster? Seriously?” he was close to snickering, Sehun could tell.

“Oh, my god. You destroyed our home!”

Kai genuinely looked bemused and bewildered now. “I didn’t. Raydon Sinclair did.”

Sehun pulled himself from the wall and gaped at Kai. “No, he didn’t.” the words came out as a whisper. “ _You_ did.”

“What? You mean the mess upstairs?”

“Yes… You…” Sehun gulped and licked his lips before continuing. “When I came home, you had destroyed the living room. And then you… you were still in your human form, but you had Werewolf claws and Vampire fangs. Your eyes were… I can’t even describe them.” Sehun could not get the horrifying image of Kai out of his head. His veins were protruding and black. His claws were just as black and they made Sehun’s blood run colder. There was nothing more petrifying than what Sehun saw of Kai last night.

Kai’s face wilted at once and he vacantly blinked at Sehun. “Was I…” he clenched his eyes for a moment and pressed a palm to his own forehead before running the hand through his hair, flipping his bangs back. “Was I going to hurt you?”

It took Sehun a moment to respond as he realized Kai really had no vivid recall of what had happened. “I think so.”

“Fuck.” Kai hissed to himself, clenching his fists. “I have to go.”

“Wait. Kai.” He hadn’t had the chance to tell Kai about the carvings on the stake, but before he could get one, Kai bolted up the stairs like a lightning. Sehun immediately followed.

“Where’s Selvyn?” Kai rasped to Lenz who was crouching, examining the dried pools of blood on the floor.

“He’s waitin’ outside.” Lenz answered, rising to his full height. Sehun did not miss the way Lenz briefly scowled at him, but the scowl died as quickly as it rose.

“Do you drive?” Kai asked.

“I do. But I don’t have a licence.”

“This is a town full of supernatural creatures. Who cares about driver’s licence?” Kai tossed him the car keys which Lenz caught effortlessly.

“I don’t know. My father? He’ll whine the living daylights out of me. He did it the first time he caught me driving our car.”

“I’ll handle Adrian.”

“I was talking about your brother.”

“Ah, makes more sense. Heads up.” he flung the duffel bag to Lenz. Grabbing the bag, Lenz cocked a brow at his uncle. “Get back home. _Straight_ home.” He emphasized on ‘straight’, pointing a finger to Lenz.

“Where’re you going?” Lenz asked, baffled.

“Not your business, kid.”

“ _Kid?_ You’re two years older than me.”

Kai faced Sehun. “You coming? We’ll take your car.”

Without inquiring about anything, Sehun blinked and hurried after Kai who stormed out of there.

 

* * *

 

“Pierre-Auguste Renoir was a really nice man.”

Lenz pulled the SUV to the driveway, rolling his eyes for the nth time. “I don’t know who that is either.”

Selvyn pinned him with a mocking grimace. “How can you not know one of the most celebrated impressionist painter?” he scoffed, taking another drag on the blood bag. The metallic stench was beginning to nauseate Lenz. “Do you at least know Claude Monet?”

“Did you meet him, too?”

“Yes, of course. My brother’s favourite was Francisco Goya. Although he did not love the man as much as he loved Oscar Wilde.”

“The poet?” Lenz killed the engine and stared at Selvyn for a moment. The boy earnestly sucked in another mouthful of blood. Colour had finally returned to his cheeks and he lips were pinked.

“He’s not just a poet for god’s sake. Were you brought up in a barn by a couple of cows?”

“Not everyone has the opportunity to meet and flirt with ancient old dudes. Now why Wilde was your brother’s favourite?”

Selvyn pursed his lips, looking down at the blood bag. “He had a thing for literature men.”

“Gross. Get out.” Lenz couldn’t help but groan in disgust as he exited the SUV and grabbed the duffel bag from the backseat. “Here.” He handed Selvyn the bag. “Take it inside. I’ll be right back.”

“Where are you going? Have you seen yourself in the mirror lately? I can’t believe your uncle let you drive when you haven’t slept in ages.”

“Oh, because you’re so vulnerable to accidents and deaths, huh.” He flicked Selvyn’s forehead and the boy stumbled back with a pair of wide and shocked eyes. He gaped at Lenz as if he had seen a ghost. Lenz took in the brilliant green eyes as they reminded him of Skylar’s. He literally had no clue why his heart always pounded against his chest whenever he thought of that arrogant, stubborn Vampire. “Come here.” He sighed and cupped a side of Selvyn’s jaw before swiping his thumb on the corner of Selvyn’s lips to wipe the smeared blood. He felt Selvyn freeze under his touch and he unconsciously stared into those deep emerald eyes which stared back into his brown ones. Selvyn was at least ten centimetres shorter than him. At least six shorter than Skylar. God. He needed to stop thinking about Skylar.

Withdrawing his hand from Selvyn’s face, he pocketed the SUV’s keys and turned on his heel. He halted and walked back to Selvyn to wipe his thumb on the boy’s coat. Then he started into the forest. He had to his part to help his family. Even if it meant he had to pay the creepy downworld Werewolves a visit.

He walked under the unrelenting sun without a break—which he clearly needed—until he reached Arkyn’s cabin-like house. A grin crept to his face as soon as he spotted Nadya on the veranda, dressed in a tank top and a pair of denim shorts. She instantly looked in his direction before he had even crossed the fence. “Lenz!” she chimed cheerfully and leapt down the veranda as Lenz jumped over the fence. “Hey there, stranger.” Her smile was just to die for. She gave Lenz a subtle hug and a peck on his cheek. “You didn’t show up last night.”

“Yeah… I was… busy.” He snorted, mirroring her smile sleepily. “Hey, is your brother home?”

“He sure is.” Arkyn answered as he walked out of the shed beside the house. Lenz had to bite his tongue to not to make a remark about Arkyn’s sweating, shirtless body. Unlike Lenz, he carried his body lean, but muscular. Lenz was just huge. And he knew next to Arkyn, he’d look like a gigantic monster. He took after Adrian and Arkyn’s body resembled Kai’s. Lithe, but strong. “What’s up?” he asked, wiping his greasy hands with a piece of rag.

“Do you guys know anything about the downworld Werewolves?”

Both Nadya and Arkyn exchanged an unreadable look as they fell silent for a moment. “Why are you asking about them?” Nadya inquired.

“I know this sounds crazy, but…” Lenz drew in a deep breath as Arkyn ran his fingers through his messy dirty-blond hair. “I need to meet them.”

“Yeah. That does sound crazy.” Arkyn scoffed, scrubbing his protruding abs with the rag. “Nad, slap some sense into him, will you?”

“Guys, I really don’t have anyone else to ask.” Lenz began to plead. “I need your help. You don’t even have to come with me. But can you at least tell me where I can find them?”

“Whoa, Lenz. You can’t go there alone.” Nadya rasped, clutching Lenz’s arm. “Are you mad? These packs are outcasts. They’ve been exiled for a purpose. They are genetically more violent and it’s almost impossible to handle them single-handedly. They don’t live by a code of conduct.”

“That’s exactly what I want, then.” Skylar was indeed helping him.

“Better, don’t go at all.” Arkyn snapped. “Why do you want to meet them anyway?”

“I just have to. Please.”

“You’re gonna go on your own if we don’t tell you, aren’t you?” Arkyn sighed.

“Yeah.”

“I’ll go with you.” Nadya offered.

“Don’t even dream about it, rebel.” Her brother prodded a greasy finger into her temple, shoving her head. Then heaving a sigh, he faced Lenz. “You are literally taking this new friendship thing seriously, aren’t you?”

Lenz shrugged. “So you’ll help?”

“I’ll go with you. But if you get eaten alive, I will not hold any responsibility.”

“Fine by me.” He beamed. “So tonight? At midnight? We’ll meet here.”

“I’m coming, too.” Nadya insisted. “You’re gonna need a party of at least three, come on, Arkyn. I’m bored to death!”

Arkyn rubbed his forehead, sucking in an exhausted breath.


	33. “We’ll have to find a way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little Arkyn x Vinn at the end ^.^

“Where’s Lenz?” Adrian barged into the room, calmly announcing himself.

Jongin raised his head from his hands and passed his husband a subtle glare. “In his room. He’s sleeping.”

Letting out a sigh of relief, Adrian flumped to take Jongin’s side on the foot of the bed. “And Kai?”

“He left with Selvyn to get supply. But Selvyn came back with Lenz and… Kai went AWOL,” he could feel the unwanted tension between Adrian and himself. What irked Jongin the most was the fact Adrian was hiding something from him. Perhaps more than ‘something’. “What about you? Did you see Sehun?”

Adrian gave a curt nod of his head and Jongin found himself averting his gaze when Adrian glanced to him. “I did,” there was a condescending edge to his tone. “It’s a mess down there,” he sighed. “Raydon… killed Sehun last night and… Kai might have—”

“Yeah, he told me,” Jongin interrupted. “He hasn’t.”

Adrian cocked his brow, demanding further explanation, but Jongin fell silent again and looked away. “Then why is he avoiding him?”

“Sehun broke up with him. You don’t know the kind of mess Kai was in when that happened. And then Sehun comes back? If you want my two cents, there will be no harm in Kai not imprinting on him again.”

“Are you listening to yourself? Jongin, Sehun is Kai’s mate. Why would you even say that?” there was a palpable hint of vexation in Adrian’s voice.

“He might be his mate. Doesn’t mean he’s genuine.” Jongin spat and sharply cast a lour out the window. The evening sky was darker than usual, gloomier than ever.

Adrian was mum for a long moment before Jongin felt his semi-warm fingers brush his arm. Retracting his arm, Jongin recoiled and scooted away to the edge. “Jongin,” Jongin did not have to look at his husband to know that he was frowning. “What’s wrong? Is Sehun not genuine or am _I_ not genuine?”

Finally facing him again, Jongin felt his eyebrows furrow into a furious scowl. “What are you not telling me?!” he rasped and Adrian dropped his head, clenching his eyes. “What? Do you think I can’t handle it? Adrian, if you’re trying so hard to just protect us, don’t. Why can’t you let us help you?”

“Because you can’t help me, Jongin,” Adrian muttered, keeping his head hung. “I have done… enough bad deeds in my life. I don’t want the list to grow longer. It’s nothing complicated. Just my conscience and I doubt that you’d understand.”

Jongin shot up from the bed. “What are you talking about?”

“I don’t want to let the clan or the pack fight for us. They won’t win. _We_ won’t win.”

“You don’t know that for sure!”

Adrian jolted up to his full height and grabbed Jongin by his arms. “You’re desperate. Trust me, I’m desperate as fuck, too. But asking people with families and children and loved ones to risk their lives for us is non-negotiable, Jongin. I care about our pack. I also happen to care about those Vampires in the clan who are willing to risk their necks for me. What have I even done for them, huh? We can stay here and fight Raydon. We’ll lose. Or we can ask the clan and the pack to fight with us. We might lose. But at what cost?”

Jongin felt shaken for a second as he stared, wide-eyed, into Adrian’s expression. “If we don’t fight, we’ll have to run for the rest of our lives. If we surrender, Raydon will either kill us all or spare our lives only to make a hybrid army. We’ll put all the Werewolves in this world in danger _and_ thus, the Vampires.”

Adrian dropped his hands from Jongin’s arms and began to pace the room, rubbing the back of his neck as if it ached. “We could run.”

“He would find us again.”

“We’ll run again.” he spat.

“Adrian, even if we run, what’s the guarantee that he won’t attack our family and pack here? We can’t… all run.”

Adrian sank back in the bed. “I have no idea what to do.”

“We’ll have to find a way.”

“We’re running out of time, Jongin. He knows exactly where we are. It’s only a matter of time until he gets his troop here. Considering that is what is delaying his attacks. No one knows what Raydon has in mind and what he’s playing at.” he pinned Jongin with a sorrowful gaze.

Licking his lips, Jongin lowered to his knees before Adrian and held onto his husband’s hands. “All right,” he murmured. “We’ll do it your way. Everything. We don’t have to… involve the clan or the pack,” he cupped both sides of Adrian’s face and brushed his lips on his forehead. “Just tell us what to do and we’ll do it. Run, fight, surrender. Whichever. I trusted you and I still trust you.”

Adrian kept his eyes and lips shut tight as he clung onto Jongin’s hands that were holding his face up. They had no other option. If they chose to run, Raydon could still get rid of the stumbling blocks, namely Kai and Jongin who were a potential heirs to the Count. If Raydon wanted to be the Count without any obstacle, he’d have to kill Adrian’s entire family. Jongin understood that. He would leave no traces behind.

“Adrian?” he called when Adrian had not responded for a long while. Then bringing their foreheads together, Adrian curled his hands around Jongin’s neck.

“I don’t know… Jongin.” he mumbled against Jongin’s lips, slightly tilting his head and kissed him. His kiss was sad—miserable. It was like the last love letter, full of overwhelming disappointment.

 

* * *

 

Even in the evening, the club was jam-packed with people—both men and women, all Werewolves, humans and Vampires. This had to be the only location in town where no one cared about what _species_ they were. Sehun felt a little too cramped in there, though. He had not been to Viw’s nightclub in years and he wondered where Donna had gone to. Perched on one of the stools at the bar counter, he aimlessly glanced around, hoping that no one would recognize him. The last thing he wanted right now was to bump into someone from high school and have the awkward, “wow you still look young” conversation. It had been easy for them since they lived almost at the edge of the town and rarely paid a visit to the town. Sehun was frankly too tired of it. This town, these familiar faces, this boring routine of life.

“Can I get you a refill?” the bartender snatched his attention as he faced the girl. She was a pale face as well. Smiling politely, Sehun refused.

“No. I’m just waiting for my… partner.” The last word kind of stung on the tip of his tongue as the girl shrugged and shifted to entertain someone else. Sehun had no clue what Kai was doing, dragging him all around town for the entire day. They had gone to an old second-hand shop which sold antiques. Kai asked him to wait in the car several times when he dashed into some other shops. And now they were here. He kept saying that _he’ll explain later_ and ‘later’ had yet to make an appearance.

But Kai did, after some while. Jumping off the stool, Sehun hurried to Kai, but his pace lost its vigour when he spotted Viw at Kai’s side. “You know I wouldn’t lie to you, Kai,” Viw chimed in a steady and cocky tone, smiling convincingly at the flustered Kai. “Had I known, I would inform you right away.”

“You’ve no idea whatsoever?” Kai demanded under his breath, glowering a little. But mostly, he looked disappointed.

“What’s going on?” Sehun inquired, joining them. Viw looked much different now. He wore less opulence now.

“Ah. So you’ve brought your boyfriend. Why didn’t you tell me?” Viw shot Sehun a seductive smirk and Kai cleared his throat.

“Ex… boyfriend.” He let out.

“Oh, my,” Viw blinked his eyes rapidly. “That’s unfortunate. Well, if there’s anything else I can help you with.”

“I still don’t buy it,” Kai mumbled relentlessly. “You once handled things like that.”

“Once, Kai. I no longer do. Of course, due to the regulations and terms you and Adrian had instigated on us Vampires. I clearly recall you warning me that you would have to rip my head off should I ever involve myself in illegal weaponry. I do not own a single drop of Vervain or Wolfsbane.”

Sehun’s eyes widened. “Vervain and Wolfsbane? What do you need them for?” he hissed to Kai who ignored him.

“Right,” Kai shook his head, biting his lower lip. “Don’t you have other… influences?”

“You seem quite desperate,” Viw sighed. “Hmm,” he hummed and inched closer to Kai’s face. “Those outcasts that your father, Adrian and _his_ father had outlawed a long time ago.”

“What about them?”

“They don’t stick by your laws.” He smirked.

“You think they might be able to help?”

“I’m sure they would love to gorge on your eyes. But with the right price, I’m sure they will offer what they have.”

Sehun stood there, feeling like an imbecile and outgroup.

“All right,” Kai murmured, wearing his contemplation expression. “Hey, Viw. Heads up. I wouldn’t stay in town for a while if I were you.”

Viw looked a little perplexed, but Kai did not bother to elaborate any further on his warning as he turned on his heel and stormed out of there as Sehun tagged along. “Care to explain?” he rasped, hurtling after Kai before coming to an abrupt halt at the exit. The sudden cacophony of the old downpour deafened Sehun for a second as the rain sprayed on his face like a Scotch mist.

Kai let out an infuriated sigh. “Fuckin’ outstanding.” He hissed to himself and bolted into the rain. Within the blink of an eye, he reached Sehun’s car. Shaking his head, Sehun jolted to the car and hurriedly jumped into it, although the rain had already soaked his head and shoulders.

Starting the car’s engine, Kai gripped the steering wheel, but made no other movement. He stared vacantly at the splashes and splotches of rain on the windshield. “Why are you looking for Vervain and Wolfsbane?” Sehun asked when he realized Kai was spacing out.

Then heaving a sigh, Kai released the wheel and slumped back against the seat before clenching his eyes shut. Sehun watched the rivulets of rainwater trickle down the side of his face and neck. Swallowing, he forced himself to look away. “You said that… I turned crazy last night.”

“You did.”

“When I was in Transylvania, Vance told me something like this. It doesn’t happen to normal lycans. It’s the Berserkers. I didn’t buy a word for it. Thought he was just scaring me so that I won’t go around, massacring people. It didn’t stop me, though. He said something about triggers. You know. They way Werewolves are triggered before they transform for the first time? Something like that. We’re not exactly famous for great anger management, you see.”

“Or hormone management.” Sehun scoffed and Kai shot him a grimace.

“Okay, do you think I’m joking?”

“No. No. Please, go on.” He urged him.

“You think I’m joking.”

“No, Kai. I saw what happened to you. You were… weren’t transforming into a Berserker. You were transforming into… I don’t even know.”

“A monster,” he nodded to himself and then shook his head. “This could be happen again.”

“So what’s the Vervain and Wolfsbane for?”

Silence stretched between them and Sehun grew anxious. He extended a hand and rested it on Kai’s knee before Kai pushed it off. Frowning, Sehun turned his gaze to the window and glared at the rain with millions of shattered memories not wanting return to him. Kai had told him that one of their first most intense make-out sessions was in the rain. Then of course Sehun had experienced several intimate activities in the rain with Kai, after rain, during rain. They’d often stumble and stagger to their room in a tangle of limbs, bathed in rainwater and have lazy wet sex. Seemed like a lifetime ago.

“I need your help.” Kai said after a while and Sehun met his agonizing gaze.

“Oh. So we’re on… help and favour terms now? What am I your friend?”

Kai scowled at that. “You cannot be this indecisive, Sehun. One minute you want me and the next you walk out on me after blaming me for atrocious things. I’m not sure what you want from me.”

Sehun sighed. “You’re right. I’m sorry. My life is just… so screwed up right now.”

“Yeah. Mine, too. Anyway, I need you to promise me something.”

“What is it?”

“If anything… like last night happened to me again,” there was a long pause. “Sehun, I want you to just… kill me, okay?”

Sehun pursed his lips, a little baffled, a little amused. Was Kai kidding? He certainly look so. Was he testing Sehun? “Kai—”

“No one can know about this,” he blurted out. “Everyone already has their own problem.”

“You’re joking, right?” Sehun laughed, but it sounded dead even to his own ears because he knew Kai was not joking. Not one bit.

“I wish I was,” he whispered, lowering his head. “I need to meet the downworld pack.”

“Kai, don’t change the topic. What are you talking about?”

Licking his lips, Kai brought his head up and fixed his gaze on Sehun’s face. “I can hurt people, Sehun.” he said, blatantly.

“You didn’t hurt anybody.”

“I could have hurt you last night.”

“But you didn’t.”

“Because according to you, I had a metal rod driven through my chest by this bastard who you have a creepy past with. The carvings on the stake have to mean something.”

“Maybe we’re just thinking too much into this.”

“No. I have to go. Get back home and if you’re not gonna leave town, get to safety at least.” He did not specify what ‘safety’ was at the moment. Sehun knew he could not and would not seek Adrian or Jongin or the pack for protection. Besides, he highly doubted that he was the one who needed protection from Raydon. Adrian was right. Sehun needed to find a way to help by at least drawing up a deal with Raydon.

“Kai.”

“I think we’re reaching an end here.” Kai muttered, staring straight.

“We’re not reaching any end. Stop. Nobody’s gonna die. And I’m not going to kill you just because you lost it for a moment.”

Kai shook his head and unlocked the door. “Maybe we should stop trying.”

Sehun fell dead silent. He could not console Kai. He was not sure if Kai even wanted any solace from him. All that he was certain of right now was that Kai wanted a break from him. He needed to let go. Kai exited the car and slammed the door shut. In the loud silence, Sehun sat still with a blank haze in his head.

When he reached home, the rain had calmed, leaving its moist and humidity behind. Sehun wondered if there was a way to just walk away from all this and start over. But he was already an incomplete person. Destroying anymore part of him would make him nothing but an animate object.

His heart dived to the pit of his stomach as he came to a jerky stop with his jaw falling to the ground. The velvety night sky roofed him and the moonlight set Raydon’s brilliant red hair on fire. He casually raised his gaze, perched on the veranda’s steps and smirked at Sehun, twisting the stake in his hand. The stake that he had used to kill Sehun last night.

Frozen and paralyzed, Sehun calmed his blood and balled his hands into fists. “We need to talk.”

Raydon arched a brow and rose to his feet. “I was certainly not expecting those words.”

“Were you expecting something close to asshole and son of a bitch?”

Raydon’s smirk widened and he gracefully shrugged. He had Selvyn’s eyes, but his facial features resembled Skylar Sinclair’s. He had well-built body, clearly showcasing the elements of a full-fledged Werewolf. “Still as handful as ever, Sehun?”

“Who are you?” Sehun snapped, exhausted and tired of games.

“Need I reintroduce myself?” he climbed a step down and Sehun planted his feet firmly into the gravel of his driveway.

“How do you know me?”

“Ah. You must be really confused.”

“The carvings on the stake. What is that?”

“Hm. So you picked up on my little intimation. You had always been really smart. Well, Sehun. Vance erased a huge part of your memories and replaced them with false ones. I am not surprised you do not recognize your best friend.”

Sehun grimaced. “What are you blabbering about?”

“It was purely fate that we met. You were younger back then. I met you at the shop you used to work at,” he descended the rest of the steps but held his ground at the bottom. “One thing led to another,” his deep hoarse voice was steady as the night air and his smug smile of complacency remained on his full lips. “You see, I was hiding from Vance. When he found me, he took a great interest in you. I… had to run. I wanted to bring you with me. But you had a family and you wouldn’t leave them. I ran out of time. So I fled. Forever regretting that decision. By the time I found you again, Vance had gotten his claws on you. That manipulative bastard. Years later, I found out that you had become his little puppet. I sent my son to follow you, only to find out that Vance was turning you into a monster. Then you disappeared. Again.”

Sehun digested some of the narration, but a huge part of it rang in his ears aggressively.

“Sehun, I… I’m not here to hurt you. Ironically, I’m not going to hurt you only. I realize you have a life now. A very unhealthy one.”

“I don’t know who you are. I don’t remember one bit of you.” Sehun forced his tongue to move.

“Think hard enough, Sehun. Some remnants must be left,” he said, taking a few steps closer. “Just like this pattern,” he held the stake out. “You carved it on a log on the first night we spent together. That was the only piece of you I could bring with me. And for 60 years, I could only hold onto that. Vance found you because of me. I started all this. I got you into whatever the mess that you are in right now. If it weren’t for me, Vance never would have come to the village. He never would have known about your existence. He wouldn’t have gotten to you in order to get his revenge on me. This story of yours, Sehun, never would have reached this far if I hadn’t walked into your life.”

“Okay, this is insane,” Sehun let out, holding his palm up. “Even if what you’re saying is true, you’re a psychopath that wants to kill my boyfriend, his brother and his husband.”

“That’s entirely another issue. In all fairness, I am the rightful heir to the Count.” He sounded cynical now and Sehun scowled.

“Why haven’t you done anything, then?”

“Oh. I heard the Count is recruiting the Bahira clan for help. I’d love to give him a chance to have a fair fight.”

“A fair fight would be to challenge him face-to-face, single-handedly. You’re a coward.” Sehun growled through his grit teeth.

Raydon’s smirk widened and he closed the distance between them. Sehun stood his ground, chest out and shoulders rolled back. He was not going to be intimidated by this guy. “I am unfamiliar to hearing negative impressions of me from this lips.” He cupped a side of Sehun’s face and brushed Sehun’s lower lip with his thumb before Sehun swatted his hand off.

“Stay away from me,” he snarled, glaring straight into Raydon’s green eyes. “If Vance erased my memories of you and replaced them with false ones, I’m glad he did so. Because there is no way I would have befriended someone like you.”

Raydon retreated a step and stared at Sehun with either awe or appalment. Sehun couldn’t tell. “You don’t believe me.” he let out.

“You come here and blabber all this shit and expect me to just believe you off the bat?”

“Is it because of that menace you were in love with?”

“I _am_ in love with him.”

“Oh, Sehun,” he sniggered arrogantly. “I should have just ended him last night itself. Maybe I have underestimated your love for him.”

Sehun paused that instant as he stared intently at Raydon who looked a little torn.

“I shouldn’t have come, making my claim on you. But I have longed for the day we meet again and I certainly was not expecting for you to be in love with someone else. Sehun… you are shattered within. I can see it through your eyes. Vance has damaged you in so many ways.”

“You know nothing about me.”

“He damaged me, too,” his voice was very low, but still very hair-raisingly deep. “Things can go back to the way it was. You and me. We can—”

“Go away.” he muttered, averting his eyes.

“Sehun—”

“Don’t even say my name. I don’t know who you are, okay? And I don’t care if you’re someone from my past. I’m pretty sure Vance erased many people from my memory and I can’t entertain them all when they come back into my life.”

Raydon was awfully quiet for a moment as he gazed into nothing. Then he brought his piercing eyes up and grinned lopsidedly. “Fine. In that case, do expect a death in the house tomorrow.”

Sehun lost it at that. He did not know what had gotten into him when he launched himself onto the first ever hybrid and plunged his fist into Raydon’s face. They stumbled back and Sehun bared his fangs, eyes targeting Raydon. He clutched the stake in Raydon’s hand but failed to retrieve it as they crashed into the wet gravel. Raydon did not struggle in the least when he tossed Sehun over and mounted him, still successfully holding onto the stake. Trapped under him and with the gravel prodding his back, Sehun grunted and hissed.

“I’ll make another proposal, Sehun,” Raydon gasped, grabbing both of Sehun’s hands before pinning them to the ground. “Give me your word that you will join me. And I’ll battle both Adrian _and_ your lover single-handedly.”

Sehun’s fight faltered and he gaped at Raydon. “What?” he panted out.

“If you refuse, I will attack them. All at once. And believe me. They will not win and I will not spare any of them. Including my sons who’ve turned their backs on me,” He snarled as if he were spelling the words out, holding Sehun down. Sehun released his fists as he helplessly stared into Raydon’s eyes, unblinking.

 

* * *

 

He knew sneaking out of the house while his fathers were wide awake would be almost impossible. Fortunately, Lenz had plenty of experience from sneaking out of the house one too many times to attend parties. However, he needed Jongin and Adrian to be cooped up in their room before he could make an escape. He peered at the time. Five past midnight. He was late, but was refreshed after that long nap. Pulling his t-shirt off, he rummaged through his luggage for a proper shirt to wear. Yanking a white shirt out, he pulled a sleeve on and that was when the door sprung open.

“Oh, my god,” Selvyn gasped and turned his head away at once. “I didn’t see anything!” he blurted out and Lenz stared at him, a little confused.

“I’m not naked,” He spat, pulling the sleeve on and started to button the shirt up. Selvyn glanced in his way again with his cheeks glowing in pink. “What are you doing here?”

“This is also my room, remember?” he said and quickly caught his bottom lip between his teeth, staring at the cleft of Lenz’s chest before Lenz buttoned the shirt. Then clearing his throat, Selvyn entered the room. “Are you going somewhere?”

“Yes.” He turned to the mirror and ran his hands through his hair a couple of times to neaten it but it ended up becoming even messier. He didn’t bother with it and pulled his jacket on.

“Where? It’s midnight.”

“You must be the only Vampire who cares about how late it is.”

Selvyn shrugged. “Can I come?”

“No!” he snapped.

“I want to.”

“I just said no.” he blinked, scowling at Selvyn who jutted his lower lip out. Shaking his head, Lenz started for the door. “And don’t tell anyone.”

“Oh. Your daddies don’t know that you’re sneaking out?”

“I wouldn’t be _sneaking out_ if they knew. What are you, a two-year-old?”

“I’m not a house guest. I can go wherever I want to, too.”

“Fine by me. Get out there. Treat yourself to the Werewolves. I heard they’ve acquired quite a taste for redheads.” Lenz winked, flashing a mocking smirk.

“Bring me with you.” he started to plead as all humour died from his expression.

“No.” Lenz turned to walk away and that was when Selvyn caught his elbow. His dainty hand was surprisingly strong.

“I promise I’ll be quiet. I won’t talk unless you ask me to. Or I’m just gonna go and get your parents.”

Lenz arched an eyebrows. “Then what’s the point of you making the promise at the beginning if you’re going to threaten me?”

Selvyn shrugged again as his slender fingers lingered on Lenz’s elbow. “I was trying to be polite.”

“Urgh!” he groaned, rolling his eyes, throwing his head back. “All right. Keep your mouth zipped and when I ask you to stay put, you stay put. When I ask you to roll over, you roll over. When I ask you to play dead, you… just be yourself.”

Selvyn made an annoyed face, but he seemed excited. “And I thought you were the dog.” He whispered as they hurried out of the room.

 

 

 

* * *

 

** Entr’acte **

 

“We’re so dead if dad finds out.” Nadya hissed, standing by the doorframe.

“I didn’t ask you to go,” Arkyn whispered back, drying his wet, messy hair with the towel. “You were the one who was persistent, Nad.”

Nadya exhaled a loud sigh. “I should go and get ready. Dad’s asleep.”

Arkyn did not make a reply as he turned to face the window. It was pitch black out there and his shoebox sized room had never felt more cramped. Tossing the towel aside, he pulled his ripped jeans on and let his damp bare body dry as he climbed into the narrow bed which was several sizes too small for his height. He let his feet hang over the edge as he leaned against the headboard and grabbed his sketchbook and pencil. He had agreed to accompany Lenz on his little suicide mission only because he liked Lenz. To a very great extent. And also because he did not want Lenz to die alone. Not because he was Adrian’s kid. But because Arkyn honestly thought that Lenz would be a snob. But he wasn’t. In fact, Lenz was one of the sincerest people Arkyn had come across in life. He could be a great friend. Nadya seemed to like him as well. Vinn, too. That kind of irked Arkyn a little.

There was a very soft knock on the door and Arkyn perked up, pushing the damp strands of his hair out of his eyes. “Come in.” he called out.

Vinn stepped in and closed the door behind him. “Are you going out?” he asked in the tiniest voice there was.

“Yeah. With Lenz.” Arkyn brought one of his knees up and settled his elbow on it, smiling at Vinn.

“Where are you going?” he asked, taking a very small steps towards the bed.

“Just the outskirts of town. He wants to meet some people.”

Vinn curled his lower lip between his teeth and blinked his unmoving eyes. “Why so late?”

“Um… because he wants to? Why aren’t you asleep?”

He kept quiet for a moment and Arkyn scanned him from top to toe with his heart swelling his chest. It was almost impossible to resist the urge to haul Vinn into bed with him. ‘The weak pup’, they called Vinn. The defected pup. The incapable pup. Arkyn clenched his jaw. Vinn was wearing one of Arkyn’s oversized t-shirts that looked like a poncho on Vinn. It reached to his mid thighs and Arkyn bit his lip, well aware of the fact that Vinn was only wearing his boxers underneath.

“I couldn’t sleep.” Vinn murmured and took a few steps closer before he pressed his knee to the edge of the bed and climbed up. Arkyn waited, unbelievably impatient as he watched Vinn find his way to Arkyn’s side. He crawled closer and touched Arkyn’s thigh. Even through the thick fabric of the jeans, Arkyn felt the heat of Vinn’s fingers. Happy with himself as he had located Arkyn, Vinn dragged his gentle hand to the side of Arkyn’s waist and touched his abs before withdrawing his hand as if it were stung by a hot iron. Then he silently curled into a ball beside Arkyn, pressing himself to Arkyn’s warm side.

“I have to get going.” Arkyn whispered half-heartedly, restraining himself from touching Vinn. It was becoming more difficult with the heat season around the corner.

“Okay,” he muttered, but laid still. Then after a moment of silence, he asked, “Have you… chosen a mate, Arkyn?”

“You know I have.”

A beat. Vinn pulled himself up and splayed his hand over Arkyn’s chest. “You can’t.”

“Why not? Stop saying that, Vinn.”

“I’m… I’m not good enough, Arkyn.”

“Why don’t you give me a chance to prove it to you that you’re the one I need?” he curled his hand around Vinn’s skinny wrist. “If you don’t want me, then just say it straight to my face. If it’s because you don’t like me. Just say it, Vinn.”

“God, no!” he rasped, slightly digging his nails into Arkyn’s chest as his eyebrows knotted into an angry frown. “Nobody cares about me. You are the only one… who… who…” he trailed off as tears welled up in his blind beautiful eyes.

“Arkyn!” Nadya cried in a breath as she barged into the room. Vinn recoiled at once and pulled his knees to his chest and hugged them. “We should get going.”


	34. “I’m not coming back.”

“Since when do we endorse fraternise with bloodsuckers?” Lenz heard Arkyn hiss to his sister with an annoyed edge to his tone.

“Since your pack’s First Alpha is half bloodsucker, Arkyn,” Lenz retorted as Arkyn pulled his pickup truck over to the side of a deserted road. “You don’t need to worry about him. I know he smells like he jumped out of a really girly movie, but other than that, he won’t be a trouble.”

“He better not,” Arkyn glared to Lenz through the rear-view mirror, killing the engine. “Well, it’s not just the smell. The red hair is burning my eyes.”

“Tell me about it.” Lenz snorted and peered out the window. All that he could see was the black ink of the night.

“Okay, so we’re all pretending that I’m not actually here?” Selvyn snapped and Lenz glanced to him with a taunting smirk.

“That’s not possible,” Arkyn scoffed. “Your scent could perfume an entire city. How can we not notice your goddamn presence?” he peeped out his side of the window as Nadya scanned her side.

“Oh, you think you’re the only ones suffering over here? I feel like I’ve been packed in a bag full of dead sardines. It’s numbing my brain. And FYI, my scent is just as natural as your dog stench.”

“Where are we?” Lenz asked, disregarding Selvyn’s insult and frustration.

“We’ll have to walk from here.” Arkyn sighed and climbed out of the truck. Everyone shortly pursued after him. Lenz paused for a moment to glance around. The road—just as most of the roads in Jackson—was bordered by a thick forest. “Whoa, whoa. Not him.” he pointed at Selvyn who was adjusting his coat after stepping out of the vehicle.

“You’ll have to stay here.” Lenz ordered as he brushed past Selvyn to join Nadya and Arkyn.

“What? Wait here? What should I do all by myself?” he protested, pouting and scowling a little.

“Don’t know, don’t wanna know. Don’t really care.” Lenz shrugged and began to follow Arkyn.

“You can’t be serious!”

“And if I found out anything’s missing from my truck—” Arkyn started but was cut off by Selvyn’s sneer.

“Like what? The cigarettes that you stashed under your seat? Or the ancient CD player which I very much doubt can play a single track without going all Sputnik?”

Lenz clapped a hand to Arkyn’s shoulder. “He’s like a gazillionaire. I don’t think he’ll steal anything. Come on. I have to get home before my dads find out I’m gone.”

“Ah,” Selvyn grunted out in disbelief. “I’m way older than you lot.”

“I’m not sure you understand. We’re going to meet some rogue Werewolves who don’t play by anybody’s rules but their own,” Nadya said in a much calmer voice. “It’s better you wait for us over here.” She even smiled a little before she joined Lenz and her brother.

The foliage Lenz stepped onto when he merged between the trees of the dense forest was thicker than the one spread across the floor of the forest around his house. “Why on earth did you bring him along? He’s his brother, isn’t he? The one that attacked me.” Arkyn snarled as he led the way through the pitch black forest.

“Trust me, Arkyn. It wasn’t my idea. He was being… persistent.” Lenz replied nonchalantly and looked to Nadya who had a better solidity with her stride as she walked over the protruding roots and ocean of wild ferns.

“So, you’re friends with Vampires, huh?”

“I don’t discriminate anyone,” Lenz smirked. “I’m not entitled to prejudice seeming that my parents are as diverse as it could get in the supernatural world.”

“Good point,” Arkyn sniggered. “Now, when we reach the place, be sure to respect them, but don’t show them any of your weakness.”

“Uh… don’t you think that might be a problem?” Nadya tossed herself between them. “For Lenz, I mean. You’ve never transfigured.”

“They don’t know that.” Arkyn added. “Just let me do all the talking first.”

Neither Lenz nor Nadya argued with him on that. “Why do they live in the forest? This is barely the _downworld.”_ Lenz scoffed.

Arkyn came to an abrupt halt and pointed a finger to the rusting gates of the mouth of a stairway leading underground. “This is the end of the town. Can you smell that?”

Lenz took a heavy whiff of the forest. Only then did the faint, but foreign mix of scents struck his sense. “Werewolf scent.” he muttered to himself before he felt Nadya cup his shoulder and lean her chin on it.

“That’s just testosterones.” She laughed.

“Shh.” Arkyn shushed her and walked forward. “We don’t wanna anger them.”

“You sure as fuck don’t.” Lenz almost jumped when he heard Jongin’s voice boom past the trees and everyone spun on their heels only to see Kai leaning against a tree with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Holy shit. Thank god it’s just you. I thought it was my dad.” Lenz exhaled a loud sigh of relief and Kai pulled himself away from the tree.

“Why am I the better deal?” he demanded, marching up to them, wearing a thick scowl on his face.

“Well, you can’t ground me.” Lenz shrugged, but his uncle was apparently not in the mood for jokes when he seized hold of Lenz’s arm with a brutal grip.

“You’ve got guts coming here without protection.” Kai growled through his grit teeth and Lenz yanked his arm free.

“I’ve got protection.” He glanced to Arkyn, but found him treading back towards his truck. “Arkyn! Where are you go—”

“Forget about it. I’m not gonna fight with that douchebag.” Arkyn yapped back.

“You’d think you’d get some respect from kids when you’re Alpha.” Kai rolled his eyes.

“Well, practically speaking, you’re about the same age as him.”

“Yeah, walk.” Kai grabbed his arm again and hauled it to haul him the other way.

“No! I’m not going anywhere until I meet them!” Lenz snapped.

“Let me guess. You’re so keen on dying young that you decided to run yourself to them.” Kai hissed under his breath.

“No,” Lenz grimaced. “In case you guys haven’t realized, we’re pretty outnumbered. Has it ever crossed your mind that allying with them can help us?”

“Has it ever crossed your mind that they are outcasts for a reason? Who the hell even told you about them?” he scowled deeper.

Lenz fidgeted for a second. “That doesn’t matter. What are _you_ doing here anyway?”

“That’s none of your business. March.” He yanked Lenz’s arm to walk again, but Lenz forced him to a stop.

“ _This_ is none of your business, too.”

“Your safety _is_ my business.” His jaw was getting tighter by the second. Arkyn and Nadya had stopped in their tracks as they waited for Lenz several feet away.

“Oh, now you want to play the doting uncle?! Sorry, but I’ll pass.” He pulled his arm to himself again. “And are you following me or something?!”

“Yeah. Because I have absolutely nothing better to do than to keep a tab on the most annoying kid in this world.”

Lenz shook his head and shoved past Kai. “Fine. If you guys don’t wanna come along, I’ll go by myself.”

“Jesus Christ, why are you just as stubborn as—”

“Yourself?” Lenz spat, keeping his eyes straight as he approached the gated oubliette. He could hear a rumbling cacophony even from this distance.

“I was gonna say your mother.” Kai said after a moment and Lenz came to a stop before he turned around to face his uncle. Kai held a softened expression as he heaved a loud sigh. “But yeah. I guess I’m the wrong person to lecture you about being stubborn. You can go ahead. It’s your funeral. I’ll be happy to bring your parents the news of your death.” He shrugged and almost turned out.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Lenz groaned. “One moment you’re being this nice guy who gives two flying fucks about family and principles and the next, you’re just mean cold jerk. And you wonder why everyone has a problem with you.”

Kai’s eyes widened as he sealed his lips shut. Arkyn and Nadya at the back stood frozen with their eyes bulging out as well. Lenz’s nose prickled with a strong scent and he swallowed. He did not dare himself to turn around, but Kai crossed the distance between them and stood his ground beside Lenz. Only then did Lenz muster the courage to turn around. “Donghae.” Kai greeted the man who was standing a couple of meters away with two huge grey wolves on either sides. Lenz licked his lips and clenched his fists as Kai took another step forward to put himself before Lenz.

“I knew I smelled a rat.” The guy, whom Lenz assumed was Donghae spat. He was completely shirtless and was drenched in sweat from head to toe.

“Can we go down and talk?” Kai kept his tone steady as he spoke.

Donghae snorted and laughed. “ _Talk_? Why would I _talk_ , Kai? Last time you _talked_ , you banished us. You’ve no business here, Kai.”

“I need your help,” Lenz noticed Kai hesitated for a moment. “All of your help.”

Donghae stood stumped while the wolves snarled beside him, ready to bark or bite, Lenz couldn’t tell. “Help?” he looked like he was about to laugh.

Kai rolled his jaw and faced Lenz. “Go home.” He whispered, clutching Lenz’s arm.

“No—”

“I’ll do it, okay?” he hissed. “I’ll ask for their help. Leave.” He shoved Lenz back and after a moment of staggering and scowling, Lenz obeyed and retreated. Kai was already advancing towards Donghae and the wolves while rubbing his temples tiredly. When he re-joined Nadya and Arkyn, Arkyn quickly led them back to the truck.

 

 

 

“He’s their leader.” Arkyn only talked when they had reached his house.

“I thought the pack can only have one leader.” Lenz said, exiting the truck.

“Well, they’re not part of _our_ pack.”

Lenz exhaled an exasperated breath. “Do you think he’s going to be okay?” he asked Arkyn, sliding his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

“I certainly hope so.” Arkyn sighed, hanging his head. He cared about Kai, too. Hell. Everyone cared about Kai no matter how irritating the guy was. What a charm indeed. Lenz looked to Selvyn who looked both disappointed and disinterested at the same time. Maybe he was hoping for an adventure tonight. Well, they might have had an adventure if Kai hadn’t showed up. What was he doing there anyway? Frowning, Lenz turned to Nadya and flashed a subtle smile.

“I’ll see you when I see you, then, Nad?” he opened his arms and Nadya casually leaned into an embrace before pecking on his cheekbone. She looked sleepy, if not worn out. But mostly, she looked worried. “What’s wrong?”

She shook his head and walked to her brother’s side. Arkyn snaked an arm around her waist when she leaned into him. “You should get him out of here before my dad catches his scent.” she said, jerking her sharp chin to Selvyn who was standing few feet away, kicking some twigs.

“Yeah.” Lenz nodded and sighed before turning around. “Hey, tomato! Let’s get going.”

Selvyn shot a scowl in his way but started to walk towards Lenz. “Arkyn.” Lenz paused and turned back when he heard Nadya gasp her brother’s name. Arkyn’s face was crumpled with his eyebrows furrowed and eyes cast to the ground, trying to focus on something. Then without a forewarning, he spun around and burst into a sprint as if he were running for his life. Arkyn had dashed into the forest with a strength and speed Lenz could not have foreseen. Nadya looked horrified when she bolted after her brother.

“What’s going on?” Lenz muttered and Selvyn beside him had his mouth fell open.

“My brother.” He let out, glancing to Lenz with a traumatized expression. Lenz’s heart dropped to his stomach and he didn’t waste a second as he broke into a run after Arkyn and Nadya. He only caught a whiff of Skylar’s scent when he was several meters into the woods. He almost bit his tongue off as he bolted faster when the metallic stench of blood rammed up his nostrils.

“Arkyn!” he yapped when he caught sight of Arkyn and Nadya jolting past the trees in a frantic haste. Skylar was nowhere to be seen. Whose blood was it then?! Arkyn was way ahead of Nadya before he came to a sudden, jerky stop and crashed to his knees on the ground.

“No, no, no, no, no! Vinn!” Lenz ceased to a stop, panting hard when his eyes landed on Vinn’s motionless body on the ground with the loam around him soused with his blood oozing from his neck and head. Arkyn knelt frozen and wide-eyed as he gaped at Vinn’s body with his hands hanging mid-air. Nadya kept her distance from them as she covered her mouth with her hands and broke into tears. “V-Vinn?” Arkyn’s voice was almost dead as he brought his trembling hands closer to Vinn’s pale face.

Something churned within Lenz. It became harder for him to breathe. The raging sea of anger that boiled inside him overtook his senses. Everything burned inside him like his insides were engulfed by an untameable fire. He took fast and short gasps of breath as he turned in the direction of the familiar scent. By the nearest tree, the tail figure which Lenz had etched to his brain emerged into the moonlight. His hands were stained with blood. Skylar looked desperate as his eyes were glossed with fear. Fear of losing something.

“It wasn’t—” Skylar started but was interrupted by Nadya who turned to him. Lenz lost it all. He let the anger flow through his veins and swallow him as a whole. The anger stormed out when he arched forward and cried out. He could feel his spine cracking. He dropped to his fours on the ground when his fingers snapped and broke. The gum in his mouth screamed in agony when the fangs pushed out. The pain was nowhere near as dominating as the anger. Lenz growled, baring his teeth at the Vampire. Skylar retreated a step. “Lenz. I swear…” he let out silently, eyes bouncing to Nadya and back to Lenz.

Pushing himself up to his feet, Lenz felt his insides shift. Skylar looked miserable as he glanced down at his bloody hands. Then like a thunderbolt, Lenz launched forward right when Skylar spun around to bolt away.

 

* * *

 

Love was nothing but an aching hollowness. There was absolutely no way to make everything right. The only thing left to do right now was regret. Sehun kept his eyes on the floor, elbows propped on his knees and hands clasped together while he was perched on the edge of his bed. The night was still haunting him in the background. He wondered how much longer it can stretch. He was left with no other option.

He rose to his feet and dragged his feet to the closet. He needed to stop feeling. He wanted to embrace the numbness of pain. He had invented every excuse there could be to argue himself out of doing this. However, he saw no other way. Adrian had asked for his help. This could save lives. The lives that Sehun cared deeply for. So if saving them all required so little of his humanity, then so be it.

Dropping the luggage on the floor, he flipped it open and began to fill it with his clothes. Kneeling on the floor of the closet, he pulled out a drawer and stared at the stacks of photographs. Kai had been against them because they were too old-school, but it was Sehun’s way of making memories. He glared at the photographs and slammed the drawer shut. Once he had stocked the luggage with his clothes, he dragged it out to the bedroom and started to rummage through the drawers to get his rings. That was when he caught the scent he had gotten used to having all over his body. He turned around only to meet Kai’s bewildered expression. “You’re… leaving?” he asked under his breath as he took small steps into the room.

Sehun licked his lips and zipped the luggage. “Yeah.”

Kai stood still for a moment, staring at Sehun in disbelief. Sehun’s eyes travelled to the bottles and vials Kai was holding in his hands.

“Are those Vervain and Wolfsbane?” he cocked a brow and Kai, with palpable confusion, settled the bottles on top of the table before he took a few steps closer. Sehun swallowed and averted his gaze to the luggage.

“Where are you going?”

“Why does it matter? You told me to leave anyway.” He crossed the room to gather his passport and other legal documents.

“Sehun.” Kai whispered and Sehun had to bite his tongue to refrain himself from looking at him. “What… what happened to… I mean… we agreed to take a break. You told me you’re not going anywhere.”

“Yeah, well. I changed my mind.” he muttered, packing the passport.

“Okay. But you’re… coming back, right? Or should I—”

“No, Kai,” he rose back to his feet and faced Kai with an expressionless face. “I’m not coming back.”

“Sehun.” he let out miserably.

“What is it, Kai? What the hell do you want? You wanted me to go away, right? Now I’m going away.” He turned around.

“I love you, Sehun.”

Sehun froze in place and curled his hands into fists with his back facing Kai. He clenched his eyes for a moment.

“So why not you just kill me for good before you leave?” Kai rasped. Sehun twirled around and bolted to Kai before grabbing both sides of his face and crushed Kai’s thick lips beneath his. Kai held onto one side of Sehun’s torso as he slammed the bedroom door shut while kissing Sehun full on his mouth. Sehun was digging his own grave all over again, but he couldn’t care less right now. He will make the most of tonight with Kai.

They frantically ripped each other’s clothes off while stumbling to the bed in a tangle of limbs. Sehun let out a short groan when Kai bit his lip and suckled on the blood before he smashed his lips to Sehun’s neck. His ravenous kisses were messy and sloppy as he held onto the sides of Sehun’s body while he dragged his demanding lips down Sehun’s arching neck and sternum. When Kai reconnected their saliva-slicked lips, his tongue dominated Sehun’s mouth. When the bedframe slammed into Sehun’s calves, he collapsed back into the bed, dragging Kai down with him. “Wait. What about the break?” Kai gasped, sloppily kissing all over the corners of Sehun’s lips and his cheeks.

“I really don’t care. Just fuck me.” he snarled, hastily undoing the belt around Kai’s pants. When Sehun spread his knees apart, Kai pressed himself harder against Sehun’s crotch. “Fuck.” Sehun hissed, arching his body into Kai’s when Kai’s tongue swirled around his pebbled nipple.

“You have no idea how much I’ve missed this.” Kai mumbled, licking and kissing the flat planes of Sehun’s stomach before he sucked on the skin below his navel. Kai did not waste a single second as he stripped Sehun off his pants and boxers before he flopped Sehun to lie on his stomach. Kai’s dragged his lips all over Sehun’s back, kissing him from inch to inch and Sehun pulled himself up to his knees when Kai’s tongue glided down his tailbone. He buried his face into the mattress and clutched the bedsheets with Kai’s hands spreading his butt cheeks open before he pressed his tongue to Sehun’s tight opening.

“Nnghh...” Sehun helplessly moaned into the mattress, biting his lower lip with Kai sloppily sucking and licking his opening and all over the cheeks. He extended a hand back and clenched Kai’s hair. Another monstrous moan escaped Sehun’s lips when Kai thrust the tip of his tongue into the hole. “Fuck, Kai.” He grunted as Kai sucked on his balls now. He fisted Sehun’s cock before he pulled it back between Sehun’s legs and licked the slit. Sehun melted entirely into the bed, moaning hard when Kai sucked the cockhead.

Then he got off the bed for a brief second to take off his pants and grab the lube from the bedside drawer. He spread a messy amount of the lube all over Sehun’s ass cleft and leaned forward. He grabbed a handful of Sehun’s hair and yanked it until Sehun’s neck arched back. His lips lazily kissed Sehun’s and their tongues curled around one another. “No, no, I want you inside me. Now. Fuck me.” Sehun blurted out when Kai slid a finger into him. Kai did not let go of his hair when he positioned him behind Sehun, between Sehun’s knees. His hand slid from Sehun’s hair and he lightly gripped onto the back of Sehun’s neck as he pushed the head of his bulging cock in. Sehun let out a subtle cry and whimpered a little until Kai had thrust all of his cock in. Then Kai let him get used to the intruding sensation for a moment before he pulled out only to thrust back in. He fisted Sehun’s hair again and mercilessly gripped it as he began to thrust like an animal.


	35. “Are there more than just this crazy sadist?”

“Sehun.” Kai’s gasp alerted Sehun that he was swelling inside him. His grip on Sehun’s hair loosened a little as he leaned forward to fill the side of Sehun’s neck and the back of his shoulder with sloppy, wet kisses. Sehun clenched his teeth and painfully buried his face into the pillow when he felt Kai’s cock bulb inside him, stretching the walls of Sehun’s insides. “Fuck.” Kai hissed before he violently yanked Sehun’s hair to turn his head before his mouth belligerently covered Sehun’s with his tongue pressing between Sehun’s throbbing lips. His other hand slid from Sehun’s hip and struck a fleshy mould of Sehun’s ass, slapping it with an unbelievable force that it spun Sehun’s head for a moment. Grabbing his ass like a predator clawing at its prey, Kai pushed himself all the way to the hilt until Sehun’s spine arched back and he threw the back of his head onto Kai’s shoulder to let out a deafening cry. Kai had never been this merciless and Sehun had never been this submissive—no, he had never been this greedy. The pain guided him to an intense pleasure and with Kai knotting, locking himself inside him, Sehun collapsed altogether onto the bed. Kai’s entire weight pinned him down and he laid still for a beat before he placed a gentle kiss on Sehun’s shoulder, caressing a side of Sehun’s waist with a light brush of his hand. They were locked and Sehun knew he won’t be able to move for a while. He settled under Kai’s weight and allowed himself to be pampered by the subtle kisses Kai peppered his back and neck with while professing his love for Sehun in whispers. “I love you, Sehun.” his lips lingered on Sehun’s ear as Sehun kept his bloodshot eyes aimlessly fixed on the lamp on the bedside table. “Don’t…” he kissed and sucked on the skin near Sehun’s shoulder blade. “Leave me.” Sehun clenched his eyes shut. Kai was knotting inside him, which meant he did imprint on Sehun again after all.

_“I’ll make another proposal, Sehun. Give me your word that you will join me. And I’ll battle both Adrian and your lover single-handedly. If you refuse, I will attack them. All at once. And believe me. They will not win and I will not spare any of them. Including my sons who’ve turned their backs on me.”_

Raydon’s words numbed Sehun’s brain. How could he even trust Raydon to keep his word? But what other option did Sehun have? He had promised to help Adrian. This would cause the minimal damage. His eyes flung open when Kai shifted to lie on his side and gently shifted Sehun as well. Now, with his front body pressed against Sehun’s back, Kai slid his leg between Sehun’s legs and kept his arm curled around Sehun’s waist. “I did so many mistakes, Sehun.” Kai let out, splaying his fingers over Sehun’s stomach. “I was never… never fair to you.” he moved his hand from Sehun’s stomach to cup the side of Sehun’s face and forced him to meet his eyes. Sehun reluctantly faced Kai, wincing in both physical and mental pain.

“Stop, Kai. I don’t want… to—” Sehun choked on his own voice and gritted his teeth when Kai shifted again. “Ah…!” he reached a hand back and dug his nails into Kai’s ass when Kai moved his hips forward, thrusting in before he wrapped his hand around Sehun’s cock to give it a merciless tug. “What are you—” Sehun gasped in a traumatizing pain, but Kai cut him off with a bestial kiss, all tongue and teeth. He was still knotted and Sehun had grown incredibly tight around Kai’s cock. He was thrusting slowly and although his cock was only able to move perhaps in inch in and out, it still burned Sehun’s insides. “Kai!” Sehun moaned, tilting his head back as Kai pumped his cock. Kai’s thumb rubbed the leaking slit of Sehun’s cockhead and Sehun almost cried in escalating pain and pleasure. “Fuck! Ah!” he enveloped his hand around Kai’s and stroked his cock as Kai very slowly rocked his hips against Sehun’s ass, sliding his swollen cock further into Sehun. Kai was reaching his climax, Sehun realized. It was sooner than usual and a part of Sehun never wanted this pain to end. If it were Kai, he can do this forever.

Kai shoved Sehun to his fours again and took his firm position behind, clasping both sides of Sehun’s waist before he began to drove in inhumanely. Sehun grabbed his tight balls and pressed his forehead to the pillow, crying out a number of violent moans. Then just when Kai was about to climax, Sehun fisted his own throbbing cock and with pounding intensity, Kai exploded inside him, filling Sehun with hot, thick come. He immediately pulled out and flopped Sehun onto his back. Then curling his arms around Sehun’s thighs, he bowed his head and took Sehun’s pulsating and aching cock into his mouth. A string of obscene words slurred in Sehun’s mouth as he fisted Kai’s hair with both hands and pumped his hips up, thrusting his cock into Kai’s mouth until it slammed against the back of Kai’s throat, gagging him a little. When he spilled all over Kai’s mouth, Kai managed to swallow most of it and much to Sehun’s embarrassment, Kai licked the come from the inside of Sehun’s thigh before sucking the come off Sehun’s navel. Then with the stained mouth, he kissed Sehun with sloppy saliva, tongue and the lingering taste of semen. He dropped to the bed beside Sehun with a coat of sweat sheening on his chest and arms. They laid still for a short stretch of time, staring vacantly at the ceiling. Sehun wanted the pain to linger, but he healed quickly with Kai’s come still clogging him. He had memorized every part of Kai’s body. He knew how Kai tasted. And Kai knew how Sehun tasted. It was a taste which neither of them can forget. Sehun dared himself to move when he felt a little better.

Drawing a hand to Kai’s abs, Sehun rested his head on his chest and closed his eyes. “Kai,” he called in the lowest voice possible. Kai didn’t respond verbally, but he wrapped his arm around Sehun’s shoulders as if to protect him. “I have to leave.” He swallowed, taking in all of Kai’s spent and lustful scent.

Kai remained in silence for a moment before he cupped Sehun’s chin and Sehun brought his head up to look into his boyfriend’s tired eyes. Even as a Hybrid, Kai was bound to get fatigued at some point in this chaos. “No matter where you go, Sehun, I’m gonna come looking for you. I won’t stop until I die. I can’t let you go. Do you understand that?” he explained calmly and Sehun drew his palm down Kai’s hard sternum.

“I… do, Kai,” he muttered, leaning down to press a gentle kiss on Kai’s cheek. “So much… has happened. Things can never be the same between us anymore.”

Kai propped himself up on his elbows and stared into Sehun’s eyes. “No, they can’t. We’re too damaged. I know.” His eyes suddenly flitted to the vials of Wolfsbane and Vervain on the sideboard before he fixed a miserable look on Sehun. “At least… wait it out with me.”

“What are you talking about?” Sehun frowned.

“It won’t be long, Sehun. Eventually, one of these days, I will lose control. I’m a Berserker. Along with the boons come the drawbacks. I’m never really stable and honestly, it was only after you came into my life that I’ve started to have some control over my anger. I started to feel responsible. The thing is, I turned into a Vampire before maturing, before fully fledging my control. Unlike the wolves, I am just a jumble of ticking bombs, ready to go off at any given time. I don’t want anyone else to know. I need you… here. I don’t know what sort of monster I actually am, Sehun. I’m considered a monster even when I was just a Berserker. Now that I’m also a Vampire… I don’t know what I’m capable of.”

Sehun’s heart sank to the deepest depths. He stroked a side of Kai’s face and painfully brushed their lips together. He clearly recalled the image of how Kai had been that night. He was not a Werewolf, he was not a Vampire. He was something else. And as Kai had put it, he did look like a monster. “I love you, Kai.” Sehun murmured against Kai’s swollen lips.

“Then stay. Please.”

Sehun sighed and sat up. “Raydon was here last night.” There was no response from Kai. Sehun continued. “He… he presented me with a choice.”

“A… choice?”

Kai was emotionally unstable and once again, Sehun had triggered something entirely different and monstrous within him. He most certainly was not fit for a fight right now. Raydon had given him two options and Kai was bound to fight him in both the options. It was as if Raydon knew the best way to torment Sehun was by tormenting Kai. Either way, Raydon will get what he wanted. Kai eliminated from Sehun’s life. Sehun glanced back to Kai with a frown furrowing his eyebrows. Maybe he should have more faith in Kai. After all, Raydon did agree to confront Adrian and Kai at once. Two Hybrids—a Berserker, a Count—against the oldest Hybrid in history. Perhaps Kai could win. What if he couldn’t, given that he was unstable?

“He said that… he knows me.” Sehun slightly shook his head. “Apparently, we had a history together.”

“Where do you all your creepy ex-boyfriends come from?” Kai smirked despite the seriousness of the situation.

“I don’t have that many ex-boyfriends.”

“Are there more than just this crazy sadist?” Kai slid a hand from the small of Sehun’s back to the corner of his waist.

Sehun rolled his eyes. “He claimed that Vance tracked him down to the village I lived in. And that was when Vance took me. Erased my memories.”

“I really hate the fact that his name still lasts even after I’ve ripped his heart out.” Kai scowled a little.

“Listen.” Sehun pressed a hand to Kai’s chest. “Raydon’s coming for us. He will get what he wanted, Kai. You need to leave. Adrian and Jongin, too. Neither of the choices he gave me can spare you and Adrian. He wants to end the both of you.” and in the process, obtain Sehun as his trophy.

Kai clenched his jaw. “What choices did he give?”

“He… he wants me to go with him, join him. It almost seemed like he’s not forcing me. He wants me to voluntarily go with him. If I do that, he agreed to battle you and Adrian single-handedly until one of the sides falls. If I don’t go with him, he’ll attack us all.”

Kai scrubbed his face with his palms and glanced to the balcony’s door. “He has a plan, doesn’t he? He won’t challenge me and Adrian together if he doesn’t have a plan.”

“I think so, too. I mean if he wants me, he’s not planning to lose me.”

“Well, if the bastard wants a fight, we’ll give him a fight.” Kai got off the bed and started to pull his boxers and pants on. “Adrian won’t let Jongin or Lenz get involved in this fight. He’d rather put his neck on the line than let even an ounce of harm come to his family. And I’d do the same for my brother and Lenz. Not to mention the pack.”

Sehun pursed his lips when his heart sourly clenched in dismissal. He looked away from Kai, grinding his teeth. _What do you want, Sehun? For him to put you above everyone else?_ Sehun realized how selfish he was. And he couldn’t help it. He was no saint. “So…?”

Kai rummaged through the closet to grab a fresh t-shirt and jacket. “You should go with Raydon.” He said rather blatantly. He tossed the t-shirt and jacket onto the bed before he bolted into the bathroom and returned in seconds with his face washed, teeth brushed. He desperately needed to rest and feed. Sehun had no idea where he was off to.

“And? Do you… have a plan?” he watched his boyfriend pull the t-shirt on. Kai flashed a toothy smile before he climbed onto the bed to steal a kiss. Sehun grabbed onto a side of Kai’s head as Kai’s mouth claimed Sehun’s.

“Kind of. If he’s willing to stoop this low, he’ll stoop lower. Agree to leave with him, but only if fights us first.”

“And?” Sehun was still baffled. Kai pulled himself off the bed and grabbed the car keys. He stopped before the door. He looked back and smiled at Sehun with a newfound confidence.

“I will die if I have to, but I’m killing him.” he gathered the vials of Wolfsbane and Vervain. “I have to talk to Adrian. If your sadist ex-boyfriend shows up, tell him I’ll be looking forward to our encounter again.”

With that, Kai vamoosed out of the room, leaving Sehun completely perplexed. What exactly was Kai’s plan?

 

* * *

 

The clouds cleared, little by little, making way for the penetrating rays of sunlight. The harmonious call of the cuckoos echoed in the back of his head. The fresh smell of loam and grass was painstakingly strong. Every part of his body was sore and he could not move any of them. He felt bare as part of the nature itself. Every last one of his senses was heightened and somewhere in his head, there was a faint pounding. He blinked his eyes open, very slowly and aggressive cursed at the sun before his head stopped spinning. His blurry vision cleared and he discerned the hazy figure hovering above him. “Lenz?” the familiar voice was incredibly faint that Lenz barely heard it. “Are you okay?” Something like a blanket was draped over Lenz’s naked body and Lenz was grateful for the warmth it cocooned him in.

“Dad?” he mumbled and almost immediately regretted it. His voice was hoarse and his throat was like a sandpaper.

“Come on.” Adrian calmly stroked Lenz’s hair out of his face and secured an arm around Lenz’s shaking body before carefully pulling him up to stand. Lenz staggered and clung onto his father’s arm to regain his stability. Adrian properly covered Lenz’s shoulders with the blanket as Lenz threw his arm around his father’s.

“Arkyn.” Lenz grumbled. The soles of his feet were pressed into the damp soil as Adrian dragged him to walk.

“He’s fine. He’s at the hospital with Vinn.”

“V-Vinn… How—”

“He’s alive.”

Alive. Alive. Alive did not mean okay.

Lenz could barely keep his eyes open when they reached the SUV. His father settled him to sit on the backseat with the door opened. “How are you feeling?” Adrian inquired, holding the sides of Lenz’s face up as if to check his eyes.

“Sick.”

“It happens,” he said in a rather collected manner. It was his father, after all. Adrian never made a fuss over anything trivial. But this wasn’t trivial. Jesus Christ, he had turned into a Werewolf last night! Was it last night? Lenz honestly didn’t know. He didn’t even remember when he had passed out. “Selvyn came home and told me about it. Nadya had called your grandfather, too. She told us about everything. Sorry it took me a while to track you down. You’ll feel better soon. Let’s get you home.”

“No, dad.” He caught his father’s arm. “This is… my fault.” He looked up into his father’s eyes with so much exhaustion that he almost conked out again.

“No. This isn’t your fault, Lenz.”

“It is. It is.” He exhaled. “I… I brought Arkyn last night to meet the downworld pack.” He swallowed and lowered his head before continuing. “And… Skylar Sinclair… did this. I… I had so many chances, dad. I never told you. I should have. You wouldn’t have let this happen.”

“Look at me.” Adrian ordered and Lenz glanced up. “You’ll pay for bringing them to see the downworld pack. You weren’t only putting your life in danger, but also Arkyn and Nadya’s. But you must already feel shitty enough. We’ll just get you into bed for now.”

“Adrian!” a foreign voice boomed into the open area of the forest. Adrian shifted his gaze and blinked when Kai jolted across the field to Adrian’s side. He looked like he had not fed in ages. Lenz pulled the blanket tighter around his shivering body. Kai looked to Lenz. “Did you hear about what happened to you? You hit puberty.”

“I didn’t… hit…” Lenz trailed off with abdomen screaming in agony. He had no strength to argue over his petty uncle. He rested his head on the seat as Kai returned his attention to Adrian.

“I’ve been looking for you all day. I know I’m not your preferable twin, but pick up your damn phone next time.”

“You’re not anybody’s preferable twin.” Lenz scoffed despite the pain.

Kai ignored the remark and kept his attention on his brother-in-law. “We need to talk. It’s about Raydon. Sehun and he apparently had quite the reunion last night and he gave us an option.”

“What?” Adrian arched a brow.

“You and I. Fight him. In return, he gets Sehun.”

“What?” he repeated, looking even more confused.

“Long story short, Raydon is a jealous ass ex-boyfriend who wants to put on a show to demonstrate his strength to win his sweetheart back. Talk about testosterones.”

“Okay, give me a moment to digest. He’s willing to just battle us two? He won’t harm anyone else?”

“No. Of course we can’t rely on shit he says. But it’s our best shot.”

“He wants to get rid of the both of us. He won’t come up with that if he knows he won’t win.” Adrian suddenly looked crestfallen.

“I won’t lose. If I lose, he gets to keep Sehun. I’m not gonna let that happen. But if he and his army attacked us, we would lose more people. This is the best case scenario.”

“How are you so optimistic about this?” he scowled. “ _He gets to keep Sehun._ Exactly why I’m worried!”

“Jongin and Lenz will be safe. The pack will be safe. Besides, I don’t plan on losing.”

“You’re a little overconfident.”

“You’re a fucking Count. No Vampire is as powerful as you. I have a plan.” he looked to Lenz again.

“I’m not a snitch.” Lenz spat. “I’m on your side.”

“Did you know he went to see Donghae last night?”

“I’m aware.” Adrian replied in his authoritative, fatherly voice. Lenz gulped. “That’s least of our concerns. Karm’s girl told me that… he’s a golden tier.”

Lenz’s eyes widened at this information. Kai’s jaw fell slacking for a very brief second but he quickly recovered from the shock. “Well, bodes well for us.” Kai sighed as if he felt a little disappointed.

“Wait. What’s a golden… tier?” Lenz inquired.

“I’ll tell you lat—”

“It just means you’ll be the noblest of us all. What a piece of work is a man, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties, in form and moving how express and admirable, in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a god.” Kai spat and sang. "Shakespeare."

“Huh?” Lenz grimaced.

“No, that’s only a part of it, Lenz.” Adrian waved his son off and returned to the topic at hand. “What plan do you have, Kai?”

“You will go first.”

Adrian blinked. “Go first?”

“Yeah. We’ll attack him together. But you will fight Raydon first. Wear him out. Exhaust him greatly. But I need you to back down while you still can if he advances too fast and too strong. Then, I’m gonna take on him. As a Vampire. Not as a Berserker at first. I’m gonna lace my fangs and claws with both Wolfsbane and Vervain. All I need to do is get them into his system to weaken him.”

“And… how do you plan to do that? If you lace yourself with Wolfsbane and Vervain, you will be weak as well!”

A devilish smirk formed on Kai’s lips. “I’m a Berserker, remember? I can handle it. Then, you’re going to kill us both when I hold him down.”


	36. “I’m fine, grandma.”

Kai was just insensitive or perhaps he was just as blatant as ever. This was one of the many traits which distinguished Kai from Jongin. When Sehun was in a relationship with Jongin, the latter did everything in his power to protect Sehun’s feelings. This was rarely the case with Kai. Kai was just plain and frank, and maybe a little more than Sehun would like. But this time Kai had been crystal clear. He wanted to protect his brother’s family and the pack more than he wanted to protect Sehun. However, it was not as disappointing as Sehun had anticipated. Kai was remaining objective despite proving time and again that Sehun was his mate and nothing would beat his love for him. Maybe Sehun ought to comprehend this in a different light. Kai was not being biased just because of this supernatural urge to prioritize Sehun above all else. This way, Sehun was able to understand that Kai was not forced to designate Sehun as the most important because he had imprinted on him. Even so, it hurt him just a little to know that Kai was willing to sacrifice Sehun just like that to protect his family at the first chance he had. There was nothing left for Sehun to lose. He would do as Kai had requested.

He stood before the full-length mirror and scanned his shirtless, freshly bathed body. Carding his fingers through his damp hair, Sehun ran his gaze down his chest and abdomen. Countless times he had wished for the bruises and love marks to remain on his body. He wondered if Kai would have even looked in his way if Sehun had been a mortal human with no such interesting attributes. Who was he kidding? He would not even be here if he had been a human. And maybe that was not a horrible fate either. Sehun was tired. He had lived for far too long. A part of him worried that given in a few more decades and he might turn into someone as repulsive as Vance. The sudden gush of wind rattled the balcony’s doors open and Sehun glanced to the white curtains swaying with the wave of morning breeze. He faced the mirror again and clenched his eyes shut, balling his hands into fists. The back of his neck prickled with an odd sensation that sent a jolt down his spine. He remained calm although his stomach churned.

“Your time’s up.”

Sehun did not open his eyes when he heard Raydon’s whisper before he felt the brush of Raydon’s lips on the nape of his neck. A shudder past down Sehun’s body, but he remained collected. His eyes slowly fluttered open when Raydon drew the knuckles of his fingers gently down the cleft of Sehun’s back, all along the spine right to his tailbone. Sehun was met with Raydon’s reflection on the mirror as Raydon stared into it with a corner of his lips quirked into a smirk. His fingers snaked around the curve of Sehun’s waist and held their position there.

“What have you decided on?” Raydon purred against the side of Sehun’s neck as if he was taking a long whiff of Sehun’s scent. “How long I’ve waited for this moment where you will finally belong to me again.”

Sehun swallowed and his throat burned. He turned around and faced Raydon. “I agree to your terms,” he said with his chest tight and glared into Raydon’s eyes without scrupling. “I will go with you. Wherever you want.”

Raydon did not seem surprised as though he had expected the reply from Sehun. “But I suppose you have your own terms?”

Sehun’s jaw tightened as he gave a curt nod of his head. “I do. As promised, you will fight Adrian and Kai by your own. No tricks, no chicanery. I will leave with you if you win. Not before that.”

Raydon cocked a brow and crossed his arms over his chest. “Hmm… Sounds fair enough.” He raised a hand to Sehun’s face and hesitated for a moment before he cupped one of Sehun’s cheeks. Sehun tried his level best to not cringe away from his touch or retaliate. “I hope you understand something. If I am to win against them, I will kill them, rip their hearts out, and tears their heads off their bodies. Your precious Kai will die right before your eyes.”

Sehun remained composed on the outlook, but inside, a part of him died at the mental picture of Raydon murdering Kai. There was a hidden design, Sehun understood. Raydon had his chance to kill Kai before, but he didn’t kill him. He wanted to show Sehun that he was the most powerful. He wanted to win Sehun from Kai, not just snatch him away. He wanted to demonstrate his power and to show Kai that he was indestructible. This was his incitement.

“I don’t know you well, Raydon,” Sehun started with his own smirk forming on his lips. “But it seems to me that you’re quite a presumptuous man. I’ll tell you what. I don’t know why I’m your prize for getting rid of the Count and the only other Hybrid strong enough to be an obstacle to your ambitions, but if you manage to take them both down single-handedly, I will forever be bound to you. You own me. However,” he pulled Raydon’s hand off his face. “Should you lose, you have to promise the allegiance of your army to Adrian.”

Raydon rolled his jaw as his nostrils flared. He stared at Sehun for a moment before the cocky smirk returned to his face. “Agreed.”

 

* * *

 

Jongin bolted past and between the trees, sprinting in the direction towards the house when he caught the scent of his son and husband. He and Adrian had been relentlessly searching for Lenz ever since Nadya had called them to let them know about everything that had happened. Lenz was getting into so much trouble for what he did, but right now, Jongin just wanted Lenz to be home safe.

“Lenz!” Jongin rasped when he raced out of the woods and spotted Lenz exiting the vehicle with Adrian supporting his weight.

“I’m fine, dad.” Lenz muttered before Jongin had even pounced on him and wrapped his arms around the groaning boy. “Dad, I can’t… breathe. You’re smothering me.”

Jongin pulled and mercilessly fixed a glare on Lenz. “You’re grounded! Forever!”

Lenz pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders and helplessly looked to Adrian. “Let’s get him inside first.” Adrian suggested, rubbing his hand on Lenz’s back and ushered his son towards the door.

“Thank goodness you’re back safe!” Jongin’s mother gasped as she hurried out of the house and took Lenz’s other side. “I’ll make some hot tea.”

“I’m fine, grandma.” Lenz muttered, leaning heavily against Adrian.

“Just sayin’, all of you need to stop coddling him at least now. He’s still that spoiled little baby.” Jongin turned his attention to Kai who approached him with his hands plunged into his pants’ pockets.

“What are you doing here?” Jongin inquired and was rather surprised to see Kai not in his usual pallor. He genuinely looked refreshed and even pumped with energy. No doubt he had gotten laid.

Kai shrugged. “I was here earlier. Mom told me that you, Adrian and dad went looking for Lenz. Vinn’s hurt.”

“I know.” Jongin frowned.

“Did you hear? Your boy says it’s Skylar Sinclair who did it.”

“Yeah. Nadya said it was a redhead. Selvyn verified.”

“Well, that isn’t our problem right now.” Kai ran his fingers through his hair and bit his lower lip. “Raydon showed up.”

“What?”

“He wants me and Adrian to fight him one-on-one. In return, he won’t attack anyone else.”

Jongin blinked at the unanticipated revelation. “Just… like that?”

Kai sighed. “Of course not. He wants Sehun as a prize because apparently they have a history together. It’s ironic all of Sehun’s ex-boyfriends seem to give me hell a lot of headaches.”

Jongin scowled at his brother. “And you… agreed to that?”

“Yes. This is the best-case scenario.”

“It doesn’t stop there.” Adrian chimed when he showed up again, marching down the veranda. “He has a smartass plan.” he scoffed.

Jongin faced Kai again. “What plan?”

“He’s planning to go on a suicide mission and god, I’ve never seen anybody be so excited about their death fate.” Adrian spat when he reached them and crossed his arms over his chest.

“What are you talking about?” Jongin asked, rather baffled. “What suicide mission?”

“I can take on Raydon. I have a trump card. I need you to trust me on this. All that Adrian has to do is kill me and Raydon when the time comes.” Kai elaborated and Jongin found himself gaping at his brother.

“Are you mad?”

“Maybe a little, brother.” Kai patted Jongin’s shoulder and smiled smugly. “I won’t let Sehun suffer and I won’t let any harm come to any of you. I will do my absolute best to keep all of you safe. Sehun… deserves to be free. Free from me, free from everyone. He doesn’t need to be held back by any of us anymore. Besides, I don’t think… I can hold onto my sanity for long.”

Jongin shoved Kai back by the chest, snarling at him. “Stop talking nonsense! Neither of you will be the great hero!” With his lungs filled with anger, Jongin faced his husband. “Were you going to discuss shit with me before you agreed to it?!”

“Jongin, I haven’t agreed to it. But what else can we do, huh? Kai is right. This is the best-case scenario.” Adrian justified, extending a hand to touch Jongin’s arm. Jongin flinched away hard.

“We’ll all fight if it comes down to it. You two need to stop acting like you’re the mightiest heroes of all time. You’re not! Adrian, you’re a father, you’re the Count! Kai, your pack depends on you! And it doesn’t matter if you think Sehun can be liberated if you died, Sehun does love you! Does he even know about your genius plan?!”

Kai and Adrian exchanged a desperate glance.

“Thought so.” Jongin snorted. “Fine. You can fight Raydon on your own. But why the fuck does Adrian have to kill the both of you?!”

“Because I know I won’t be the same Kai after that. I have a plan, Jongin. And you need to trust me on that. Unless you’d rather put everyone’s life in danger, you need to trust me!”

Jongin’s head spun as he turned to meet Adrian’s helpless gaze. “I don’t care what you do. If you’re going to do this, Adrian, you can forget about me.” he shoved past Adrian and stomped into the house.

“I’ll talk to him.” Kai sighed behind him and Jongin heard him hurry after him. Without bothering about him, Jongin burst into the living room only to find his mother frowning at him from the couch.

“Lenz went to bed.” She muttered with her eyes bouncing from Jongin to Kai.

“Jongin.” Kai called when Jongin raced up the stairs.

“What the hell were you thinking, Kai?!” Jongin spun around and glowered at Kai when they reached the top of the staircase. “Trying to be some sort of martyr?! Would Sehun ever forgive any of us if you went and have yourself killed because of your ridiculously reckless attitude?!”

“Hey, hey. Calm down, okay?” Kai caught Jongin’s wrists and pulled him close. Jongin’s heart swelled when Kai wrapped his arms around his body and hugged him. “Jongin, I’m losing it.” Kai whispered, holding Jongin so close to his own body. “Vance… had warned me once when I was at my weakest. I… I can’t live for long, Jongin.”

“Kai, what are you—”

“My clock’s ticking, Jongin.” Kai drew back, but held Jongin in his arms. “I can unleash it. The real Berserker within me. But I’m afraid I won’t… come back.” his voice trembled. Jongin gaped, wide-eyed as he stared into Kai’s eyes. “That’s why I need Adrian to… to end it. Sehun had seen the tip of the iceberg. And Raydon knows that he can make me lose it. And I _will_ lose it. I know this is hard to understand, Jongin. But my time’s up.”

Jongin’s throat went dry. “H-how… how can you s-say that without… No, Kai… you’re wrong.”

“I’m gonna be a monster, Jongin. I… am. Sehun’s better off without me.”

“Stop!” Jongin clenched the collars of Kai’s jacket. “Sehun’s better off without you. What about _me_?!”

Kai blinked his eyes rapidly. “Jongin—”

“I never should have fallen for Sehun.” Jongin rasped silently with tears blinding his eyesight. “I never should have used him as a distraction. We never would have been dragged into this.”

“It never was your fault. Jongin, this is—”

“No, you don’t understand.” Jongin released Kai’s jacket and turned his back to his brother. They stood in silence for a long stretch of minute before Jongin felt Kai’s hand slip into his own.

“I do, Jongin. I wish I didn’t, but I do understand.” Kai murmured, lacing his fingers with Jongin’s. “I wish… there’s something I could do about it. But you have a family. And I… I love—”

Jongin pulled his hand from Kai’s and shook his head, clenching his eyes. “Sehun. I know. I’m not asking anything from you, Kai. I love Adrian, too.” He turned around and painfully smiled at Kai. “But please… I don’t think I can survive if you…” he trailed off, unable to word it appropriately.

“If I died?” Kai chuckled a little and cupped Jongin’s face, swiping his thumbs over Jongin’s cheekbones. “You know something? I’ve always loved this kind, innocent, pure side of you. Always made me want to protect you with everything I have. Jongin, I need you to keep this as a secret. Sehun shouldn’t know.”

Jongin closed his eyes watery eyes, lowering his head.

 

* * *

 


	37. “It’s rich coming from a Vampire that lives on the base of cruelty for survival.”

Lenz stirred and roused to the damp wetness pressed to his forehead. He cracked an eye open to inspect the situation around him. He was faced with the ceiling of his room and he shuddered with a chill coursing down his body. It had been some while since he had felt cold. It was as though the heat had vanished altogether. Grunting, he turned his head to get rid of the cold, wet pressure off his forehead and was faced with a familiar face with an unfamiliar concern etched on it. Red locks of hair fell over his worried face as he withdrew his hand that was clutching a damp towel.

“What are you doing?” Lenz growled, jolting upright to sit.

“You were burning. I just thought—” Lenz swatted his hand off when Selvyn brought the towel closer.

“I’m fine.” he spat and sat up on the other side of the bed before grabbing the black t-shirt from the chair. Pulling the t-shirt on, Lenz rose to his feet and clenched his shut for a brief moment to steady his head.

“Are you sure? You looked really sick.”

“I feel just fine. Will you please… get out of here?” he turned and fixed Selvyn a merciless glare.

Heaving a sigh, Selvyn rose to his full height and bit his lip, staring at Lenz with a pair of perturbed eyes. “Look. I know you might hate me for what my brother did, but—”

“For what your _brother_ did?!” Lenz snarled, deciding against crossing the bed to clutch Selvyn by his neck. “My life and the lives of the people I care about turned into a complete hellhole from the moment _you_ turned up! First it was you. Then you claimed to be helping us. Then it was your father and now your brother. If you’ve served your purpose of the so-called ‘helping us’ get the fuck out of here!”

Selvyn stood still and stiffened with a frown taking over his expression. “I… I don’t have anywhere to go.”

“You’re a 500-year-old Vampire. I’m sure you’ll manage just fine.” Scoffing, Lenz turned his back to Selvyn in order pull the curtains open. Night had fallen and it had never been this pathetically old and exhausted. A starless, cloudless night.

“I just went against my father, Lenz. He will hunt me down. He will kill me.” There was a hint of fear in his tone as he advanced forward. Lenz felt Selvyn’s unnatural chill of his body before he felt Selvyn’s hand curl around his arm. He did not flinch away at once, but slowly turned to face the Vampire with an indifferent look.

“Do I care?” he pulled his arm free. “My father is only keeping you here because he thinks you can still help us in some sort of way. But you _can’t_ , can you?”

Selvyn kept mum for a very short moment before he shook his head, lowering his eyes. “I can’t.”

“Then, you’re just hiding here. No one here will afford you protection, do you understand? So, just leave.”

“I know we got off a bad start,” he raised his head and met Lenz’s eyes. It felt as though Selvyn had shrunk, or perhaps it was just Lenz who got bigger and bulkier in just a day. Before him, Selvyn stood and shivered like an abandoned puppy drenched in the rain. Maybe Lenz should not be blaming Selvyn at all for what Skylar did, but he needed someone to blame for what happened to Vinn, to Arkyn. “Do you really hate me that much?”

“I honestly want nothing to do with your family. That includes you. My dad and my uncle are putting their lives at stake because of your dumbass psychotic father.”

“I want to do right by you, Lenz!” he cried. “I want to stop my father. For centuries, he’s been creating an army, threatening scientists to build weapons for him, brainwashing my brother time and again to fulfil his agendas! While all that I was to him was a worthless underdog. Compared to my brother, I was always considered as _adequate_ and incompatible. I didn’t know his intentions before, I swear. It was only recently I found out what he’s been planning. He wanted to take down Vance, that was… fair. Vance ruined all of our lives. But to do… that to your family… that’s just cruelty.”

Lenz glanced away and vacantly stared at the window. “It’s rich coming from a Vampire that lives on the base of cruelty for survival.”

“I’m not like that, Lenz. And I don’t know why it hurts so bad that you think I’m just as depraved as my brother and father.”

Facing Selvyn again, Lenz sighed. “So, you literally had no idea about your brother attacking Vinn for no fucking reason?”

“No. No. I haven’t seen Sky in years. And if he had done that at all, it would not have been without a reason.”

Once the anger that was bubbling within him had calmed, Lenz slumped his back against the window and crossed his arms over his chest, keeping his gaze on the floor before he looked up at Selvyn’s pale face. “I…” he started and swallowed before starting again. “I might have… come off a little harsh and… stupid earlier. I’m… I’m sorry.”

Selvyn pursed his lips, earnestly staring at Lenz. Exhaling a tired breath, Lenz raised a hand to Selvyn’s face. He paused for a second when Selvyn closed his eyes and slowly brushed a lock of the red hair out of his face and tucked it behind his ear. When Selvyn’s eyes flung open, Lenz dropped his hand from his face and gaped at him, completely baffled at what he had just done.

“Uh…” rubbing the back of his neck, Lenz snatched the white hoodie from desk. “I… need to go.”

“Wait,” Selvyn caught his arms and glanced up into Lenz’s eyes. “Every time I see how much Jongin and Adrian love you… and even your uncle and grandparents… I sort of envy you,” he chuckled a little, withdrawing his hands from Lenz’s biceps. “Maybe that’s why I don’t want to leave without trying my level best to help your family.”

Lenz nodded his head. “I understand. But you don’t have to. It’s not your responsibility.” With that, he brushed past Selvyn, yanking the hoodie on. As he raced down the stairs, looking for his parents, he found them in the living room, the entire family on the couches in eerie silence. Slowing his pace at the bottom of the staircase, Lenz scanned the sombre expression on every one of their faces. Even Sehun was there, seated beside Kai with their fingers laced together. Lenz’s revulsion towards Sehun had dissipated. He never should have trusted Skylar for shit. He did not even know why he wanted to believe Skylar in the first place. Maybe it was because of his stupid infatuation for him. Even now, thinking of Skylar made him nervous. His father was settled on the couch with his head hung and Jongin was perched on the armrest with his bloodshot eyes glaring at Kai and Sehun.

“We can’t do this.” said Jongin and Kai’s father.

“Not _we._ Adrian and I.” Kai replied calmly and Lenz noticed the frown deepening on Sehun’s eyebrows.

“What if things go wrong?”

“Things won’t. It’s just… two against one Hybrid. How bad can it be? We’ll done and out in a jiffy.” Kai smiled, shrugging.

“He sounded confident, Kai. Maybe we should weigh out all options.” Sehun said.

“Don’t worry, silly. Adrian’s got my back, doesn’t he?” he looked to Adrian and Lenz noticed Jongin glancing away with a painful expression. Something told Lenz that no one but Adrian, himself and possibly Jongin knew that Kai was planning to get himself killed. Sehun looked in his way out of the sudden before silently fixing his attention back on Adrian who was saying something about backup plans.

“Listen. I need you all to trust me, okay?” Kai finished and Lenz clenched his jaw before hurrying out the house. The night was cold when he stepped onto the veranda, slamming the door shut behind him. Zipping up, he pulled the hood over his head and broke into a jog towards the woods. He needed to at least make sure Arkyn was alright after what happened. Besides, he really needed the solace of the forest and the night. It felt like he belonged in them and to them. His entire body felt like it was being ripped and shredded into pieces when he transformed the other night. It was not only agonizing, but it felt great. Amazing.

He came to a jolting halt in the middle of the forest when the scent struck him dumb. His breathing quickened and his stomach clenched in an aggressive knot. Baring his teeth and growling, Lenz spun around and clutched Skylar’s neck before shoving him up a tree. “I swear it wasn’t me.” Skylar rasped without putting up any fight besides glaring into Lenz’s eyes.

“Oh yeah? How about you convince me on that after I rip your heart out?” Lenz bayed through his grit teeth.

“Why? Because you think I ripped yours out?”

Lenz froze with his thumb pressed against Skylar’s vein on his neck. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t kill you right this instant.”

“Because deep down you want to trust me. You know I didn’t do it.” he struggled to get the words out with Lenz choking him. Glowering at him for a moment, Lenz felt the rush of aggression down his spine. Then he retrieved his hand from Skylar’s neck. He could not. He did not know why, but he could not even think of hurting Skylar after looking into those devout piercing green eyes.

“Why should I?” he spat and stepped back before turning away.

“I did not do it! I found him like that. I wanted to help him!”

“And you expect me to believe that bullshit?!” he yapped, facing Skylar again.

Palming his forehead for a moment, Skylar shook his head. “Why would I even be here, then, Lenz? Why would I even want you to… to not to think that I would hurt your friends?”

“I don’t know, Skylar Sinclair. Because your intention in the first place was to hurt my family.” he shrugged.

“It never was. I’m not going to side with my father. I want you to win against him. I came to warn your uncle.”

“Stop your bloody act, Skylar. I don’t want to ever see you again in my life, do you understand?”

Skylar did not respond immediately when Lenz started to walk away. Only after a moment did he bolt past Lenz before he clutched Lenz’s hoodie by his chest. “Please. Please believe me.”

“Let go.” He yanked Skylar’s fist off his hoodie and plunged his own into Skylar’s face, sending the Vampire staggering back, but it did not stop him from retaliating. Skylar lurched forward with a brutal speed and knocked Lenz down to the damp ground before Skylar straddled Lenz’s hips, holding him down with his hands pressed into Lenz’s chest.

“Do you really want to fight a Vampire that’s half a millennium years old? What are you, like a day-year-old?”

“Yeah. We’ll I just heard that I’m one of the strongest Werewolves that can destroy Vampires older than you!” Lenz latched his hands to the sides of Skylar’s waist before tossing him to the ground and mounted him. Skylar did not counterattack even when Lenz began to bludgeon his face with repeated jabs of his fist. At one point, Lenz just stopped and froze with his chest heaving as panted. One of Skylar’s cheeks was bleeding but he laid without any movement.

“I didn’t do it, Lenz. Trust… me.” He murmured as his eyes fell heavy. Lenz remained still, louring into Skylar’s emerald eyes as Skylar slid his fingers into Lenz’s hair, carding through it. Then slowly and gently, he lowered Lenz’s head. Astounded and vaguely drowned in a muddle of emotions, Lenz pressed his lips lightly onto Skylar’s trembling lips. As soon as their lips had touched, an animal urge burned in Lenz’s nether regions and Skylar shoved Lenz to the ground before straddling Lenz’s hips again. And just like that, their mouths smashed and hungrily tasted one another.

* * *

(A/N) I'm gonna start on this new fic (<http://archiveofourown.org/works/7031092>) It's a vampire/demon au. There'll be a lot of BDSM, slight dub-con, angry sex with blood, violence (Whoa am I really writing this...) Subscribe to it and leave kudos! :* Have a good day/night.

 


	38. “Why should I believe you?” (Second Last Chapter)

“What are you doing up here?”

Jongin did not answer Adrian’s question as he stared into the night, tightening his arms around his legs and burrowed his chin between his knees. Adrian climbed through the window and perched on the roof beside Jongin. “He should have told Sehun.” Jongin muttered with a sigh and Adrian gently cupped his cheek to turn his face to meet his eyes.

“Why do I always trust your brother more than you trust him?” Adrian smiled in spite of the doom that awaited them. Jongin wanted to scowl at him, but he had very little time left with his husband.

“Because I know him better.” He dropped his head to rest it on Adrian’s shoulder as Adrian laced their fingers together. Jongin thumbed the wedding ring around Adrian’s finger and exhaled a heavy sigh. “I cannot thank you enough for the life you gave me.”

“You don’t thank your husband for something like that, Jongin. In that case, I have to thank you for giving me a purpose in life again.”

Jongin raised his head and smiled, looking into Adrian’s eyes before he leaned in and lightly brushed their lips together. “I love you.”

“I love you, Jongin,” he clasped his hands to the sides of Jongin’s head and deepened the kiss. “I love you so much.”

“Promise me you will keep yourself _and_ Kai alive, Adrian,” Jongin murmured, pressing his forehead to his husband’s. “Promise me at least that.”

“I’m not going to kill Kai, Jongin. I will do what I need to do, okay? I promise you that.” He pecked on Jongin’s lips before pulling back. “I… I have to tell you something. Something that I should have told you a long time ago. It’s about Lena and… something I did after her death.”

Jongin frowned. “Why are you telling me this _now_ , then? It can wait.”

“No, I want to tell you.”

He looked away. “Adrian, you can tell me when everything is over.”

“Jongin—”

“Why now, Adrian?” Jongin let out with his heart clenching.

“Because I can’t be sure that I… can later.”

“Stop,” he hissed, glaring hard. “I don’t want to hear anything.”

Adrian sighed and glanced into the woods. “I’ve done some pretty bad things, too. Everyone has that past they want to run from. But I pulled myself out of it. Because of you. Because I loved you and I wanted to be with you.”

Jongin took hold of his husband’s hand. “You can tell me… when you come back to me, alive. Do you understand?”

Smiling faintly, Adrian stole a kiss from Jongin. “All right.”

 

* * *

 

“What now?” Sehun sighed, tearing his gaze from the car’s window and turned to face Kai who idly sat in the driver’s seat, staring out into the emptiness of the night and the dead town beneath the hill the car was parked on.

“I don’t know,” Kai muttered without facing Sehun. The only thing that was left for them to do was fight Raydon. “What do you want to do?” he turned and smiled at Sehun.

Shrugging and mirroring Kai’s sheepish smile, Sehun shook his head. “Nothing really. Just… be with you.”

“Is that all you want?” he rested a hand on Sehun’s thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“Yes. Yes.”

“That can be arranged.” Kai smirked and pressed a kiss to Sehun’s forehead. “Do you want to go home?”

“No,” Sehun turned the radio on and played a track. “Remember this song?”

Kai snorted a little. “It’s the corniest song which you absolutely love. The one we danced to on our tenth anniversary.”

“It’s romantic,” Sehun argued. “Come on.” He jumped out the car and shed his coat on the car seat before planting his feet into the gravel. The hill near Kai’s parents’ house had always been a silent one, but from here, the entire town was displayed before them. Kai exited the car leaving its door open to let the soft music fill the vacant ambience of the night.

“You want to dance? We could be doin’ it at the backseat?” Kai scoffed.

Sehun faked a scowl, although that did not seem like an entirely bad idea. “Don’t be such a pervert. We can do that… after this.” He raised his arms and Kai curled his around Sehun’s waist before Sehun locked his hands at the back of Kai’s neck. Their chests brushed as Sehun slowly led the dance.

“Mm… This isn’t half bad.” Kai murmured against Sehun’s smiling lips and brushed the tips of their noses.

Sehun gently lowered his head to Kai’s shoulder and carded his fingertips through Kai’s hair by the nape. “You’ll be safe, right?”

Kai was mum for a moment as his arms tightened around Sehun’s body. “I will,” he pulled back a little to take Sehun’s face into his hands. “Listen. You’re bound to no one, okay? If anything… happens, I need you to fight until the end and never give up.”

“But nothing will happen to you, right?” Sehun frowned, pressing his palms to Kai’s chest.

“No, no. Of course not. But I am going to battle the oldest Hybrid alive. I can’t guarantee anything.”

“Kai—”

“But I have something he doesn’t.”

“You won’t kill yourself trying to kill him, you understand? If it doesn’t work, fine. I’ll just go with him. It’s me he wants anyway.”

“He will kill everyone, including Adrian, Lenz and Jongin. He wants to be the Count. So if he doesn’t win against me and Adrian in a fair fight, he cannot claim the Count title easily without a war for him to win over. But don’t worry. He’ll be long dead before he can hurt any of you.”

“He’s dangerous nevertheless.”

“I know. Let’s not talk about him, shall we?” he smugly smiled. “The backseat’s warm. How about…” he snaked a hand over Sehun’s hip and grabbed his ass. “You let me feel all of you tonight, huh?”

Sehun closed his eyes and sighed heavily. “All right. But I’m on top.”

“Huh?”

He yanked Kai to the car and shoved him into the backseat. Without bothering to close the door, Sehun climbed onto Kai and straddled Kai’s hips before he kissed the corner of Kai’s smirking lips as Kai began to undo Sehun’s shirt.

“Oh… so this is what you meant.” Kai chimed before he claimed all of Sehun’s mouth, grabbing and tugging Sehun’s hips forward to position him directly above his crotch.

 

* * *

 

The sunlight that danced behind the lids of his eyes and the fresh scent of wood and grass roused Lenz. His dry throat made a rough grunt as his eyes squinted at the brightness. He was lying on a heap of crumped clothes, loam and grass. The subtle smell of sex and semen tickled his nose, and he shuddered when the memory of last night came surging into his mind. It had all happened so fast. One moment he was jabbing Skylar in his face and the next he was dragging his lips all over that face as all of their clothes came off. Skin against skin, mouth against mouth, their hands were wrapped around each other’s erections, pumping them with brutal force before Skylar had taken all of Lenz’s length into his mouth. The subtle moan that escaped Skylar’s lips when Lenz’s cock slammed into the back of his throat still rang in Lenz’s ears along with the chirping of the birds. Lenz had returned the favour by sucking Skylar off before they both burst into each other’s mouths. _What the fuck have I done?_

Lenz sat up and frantically looked around him. He clearly recalled having fallen asleep with Skylar’s head resting on his heaving chest, but Skylar was nowhere to be found now. “Shit.” Lenz cursed at himself and jolted up to his feet before hastily pulling his soil-stained clothes on. He had no idea why he did any of that and why he let himself do it all the way through. He had just slept with the son of the asshole that wanted to kill his father.

He froze after pulling the zip of his hoodie up when the scent he had been consuming all night long and slowly turned around to see Skylar approaching him with a vague smile plastered to his mouth—the same mouth that Lenz had savoured and the mouth that had tasted all of Lenz’s body. The mouth he had fucked, Jesus Christ. “What’s your angle?” was the first thing Lenz bothered to ask and Skylar came to a halt as a frown took form on his eyebrows.

“My… angle?”

“Last night. What was that about?”

Skylar’s red hair was pushed back and he had never glowed so bright. Lenz could not ignore how beautiful Skylar was, day and night. “You think I did it with some malicious intentions?”

“I’m not saying no.” Lenz shrugged.

Skylar scoffed. “Why did _you_ do it?” When Lenz did not answer, Skylar crossed the distance between them and clenched Lenz’s hoodie by the chest. “Same reason you did, Lenz,” he whispered. “I’ve lived for far too long and I’m tired of my father. I can’t hide from him forever. Whatever my intentions were in the beginning, I’m no longer the same. Not after meeting you. I… I want you and your family to be safe.”

“Why should I believe you?”

“Because you just slept with me, Lenz. Because you know you want to and you should. You didn’t even have to ask what my angle is. I wouldn’t have let you fuck my mouth just because of some petty agendas. I have no quarrel with you or your family. I did not hurt your friend. Not this recent one at least. When I first came here, those Werewolves were after me. I didn’t ambush anybody. And yes, I did hurt one of them. Arkyn. But only to leave a warning. Only to have their attention. I don’t want my father to be the Count.”

Lenz sighed, gently pulling Skylar’s hands off his chest. “Even if I choose to trust you, I can’t… be with you.”

“Why? Because I’m a Vampire and you’re a Werewolf? You certainly didn’t think any of that last night when you were kissing me.” Skylar hissed and this was the first time Lenz had seen him so emotional.

“That’s not why,” Lenz scowled. “I can’t do this. Not right now. I’ve to go home. If you really want to help, help me save my dad.”

“How do you think I can do that? I’m not going back to my father. He cannot find me here and he’ll kill me if he gets his hands on me. Or worse.” He rasped desperately.

Lenz slowly nodded his head. “Fine, then. You keep running, hiding. Thanks for… whatever help that you think you did us.” With that, he turned his back to Skylar and broke into a sprint towards home. He was letting his ego control him now. He wanted Skylar, too. More than he’d like to admit. Skylar’s scent was still all over his body, his skin.

He came to a jerky halt upon reaching the house when a foreign scent snatched his attention. Slowing down to a jog, Lenz scanned the surrounding. His heart was pounding in his throat when the scent grew stronger. “Dad.” He muttered, unable to raise his voice as the leaves ruffled behind him. “Da—!” he was cut off when he spun around and his heart stopped for a second when the red-haired man, dressed impeccably sharp in a long black coat, caught him by the neck.

“Hello, Lenz son of Adrian Prescott.” Raydon—Lenz presumed—murmured with a corner of his lips quirked up into a smirk. His hand tightened around Lenz’s neck as Lenz grabbed hold of Raydon’s wrist, trying to yank it off.

“Lenz!” Jongin’s cry burst into the morning before he bolted out of the house.

“Dad, don’t!” Lenz squirmed, but Raydon released his neck and shoved him back. Just when Lenz crashed the ground, Jongin jolted to his side in the blink of an eye and dropped to his knees.

“Lenz, are you okay?!” Jongin rasped before he clenched his teeth and faced Raydon with a violent scowl. Both Jongin and Lenz went still when the Vampires emerged from the forest on all sides. Lenz pulled himself up to his feet as his entire body felt like collapsing when he discerned the uncountable amount of Vampires that surrounded them, all carrying a silver gun.

“Dad…” he breathed out and swallowed.

“Finally, we meet.” Raydon chimed, grinning victoriously. Jongin put himself between Lenz and Raydon, growling menacingly.

“You won’t touch him.” Jongin spat through his grit teeth.

“Of course. You must be Kai’s brother and the Count’s lover. Very, _very_ nice to meet you.” he hissed before punching his fist through Jongin’s chest. The world stopped around Lenz that instant as his body was paralyzed.

“Ugh…” Jongin grunted as he coughed out blood with Raydon’s hand plunged into his chest.

“I forgot to bring Adrian a present. You won’t mind, would you?”

Lenz gaped at the blood that drenched Jongin’s chest.

“Jongin!” Adrian howled when he jolted out of the house. Raydon kept his eyes and smirk on Jongin before he yanked his hand out of Jongin’s chest, and faced Adrian. Jongin fell back, right against Lenz. Bracing his father, Lenz’s confused and dazed eyes landed on Raydon’s bloody hand that was fisting a heart. Jongin’s heart.

“Dad?” he panted, supporting all of Jongin’s weight. “Dad?” he whispered breathlessly. The next thing he saw was Adrian exploding into a monstrous wolf before he landed right before Raydon who took a step back. Then right before the wolf’s eyes, he dropped the heart to the ground and smiled a full smile. The wolf stood frozen for a moment and whimpered like a kicked puppy, gazing to Jongin’s unmoving body that Lenz was lowering to the ground.

“Oops.” Raydon laughed and the wolf still kept its grieving eyes on Jongin.

“Dad? Dad. Dad!” Lenz gasped with tears trickling down the corners of his eyes as he furiously shook Jongin’s body to wake him up. “No, no, no, no! Dad!”

“Yeah, I had a deal. But who cares. You see what I’m capable of, Adrian? This is my gift to you,” Raydon announced and Adrian finally turned his attention to him. He bared all of teeth and growled, taking a couple of steps forward. “Where’s Kai? Or shall we start this without him?”


	39. Final Chapter

He wanted everything to stay this way forever. If only he could die like this—with his head and arm spread over Kai’s chest, the top of his head nestled under Kai’s jaw and Kai’s arm firmly curled around Sehun’s body as they laid on top of the car’s roof, gazing at the morning sky paint itself blue. There was this beautiful, intoxicating thing about Kai. No matter how much Sehun wanted to stay away from Kai, no matter how exhausted he was with this push and pull, he can longer live a life without Kai. Kai had become a part of his stagnant, eternal life. Kai had his priorities. He cared for his family and he had his duties to fulfil. He held the importance of his pack before everything else, before even Sehun and maybe that wasn’t such a horrible thing. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as Sehun had thought. The pack was important, his family was important, but Kai loved Sehun in a totally different way. In a way he will never love anyone else. Maybe Kai loved him because he had imprinted on him, maybe Kai can never leave him because the nature had chosen Sehun to be his mate. Maybe that wasn’t a horrible thing either. Sehun might never regain the memories of the days he had fallen in love with Kai, but it didn’t matter. He got to fall in love with Kai all over again, every day and every minute he was with Kai.

Kai’s fingers idly played with Sehun’s hair as his lips brushed the top of Sehun’s head. “You were amazing last night,” he muttered and Sehun smiled to himself, sliding his leg between Kai’s. “Wow.”

It had indeed been amazing last night. “You weren’t so bad either.” Sehun said in a playful tone, fingering the button on Kai’s shirt.

Kai kissed the corner of Sehun’s forehead and heaved a sigh. “Don’t you just wish things could remain the way they are right now?”

Sehun blinked in surprise as Kai echoed his exact thoughts. He pressed his face deeper into Kai’s chest. “You have no idea,” he whispered.

“I love you, Sehun.” He cupped a side of Sehun’s face and drew it up to meet Sehun’s eyes. Then he gently pressed his lips to Sehun’s with his eyes closed. Sehun smiled into the kiss, fisting Kai’s shirt by the chest. Then when Kai drew back from the kiss, Sehun frowned at Kai’s perturbed reaction.

“Kai?” Sehun let out, surveying Kai’s pained expression. “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know,” he blurted out breathlessly and his face crumpled even painfully harder. “Shit.” He jumped off the car and Sehun followed suit.

“Kai, what’s going on?!” Sehun grabbed Kai’s shirt.

“Fuck… Jongin.” With a bestial gasp, Kai bolted into a sprint towards the woods. Completely baffled, Sehun sprinted after him. He called after Kai twice, _three times_ , but Kai paid him no heed as he jolted past the trees with the speed of a lightning. Sehun could barely keep up with him, swerving through the forest. Kai didn’t stop for even a second as he ran like a mad man. Sehun realized he was sprinting towards his house.

“Kai!” Sehun veered around a tree. Only after a moment did the scent sting his senses. His stomach knotted as his heart jumped to his throat when he glanced to the wolves racing after them. The grey wolf glared in Sehun’s way as it galloped over a log and picked up its pace to chase after Kai. Sehun desperately looked to the brown one on his other side and to the rest of wolves. They weren’t chasing him, they were following their Alpha. Sehun’s whole body shuddered as he sprinted faster. Something had happened. As he edged closer to the house, a blend of scents blinded Sehun. Vampires, Werewolves, Hybrids.

Kai leapt out of the woods and landed on his feet with every last one of the wolves landing by his sides. Sehun came to abrupt halt few feet behind Kai when he reached the house. His jaw dropped to the ground, heart almost exploded when his eyes fell on the Vampires surrounding the place. He recognized the wolf in the middle almost instantly. Adrian. Sehun looked to Lenz who had crashed to the ground and his arms was Jongin’s motionless, grey body. Lenz was sobbing into Jongin’s hair with his eyes as red as the blood painting Jongin’s chest.

Kai dropped to his knees like his universe had just collapsed before his eyes as he gaped at Jongin’s lifeless body. Sehun’s head pounded as the entire world spun around him. Raydon turned around calmly with a victorious smile etched to his lips. “Ah, we meet again,” he said, looking to Kai before his eyes flitted to Sehun. “And my love.” His hand was stained with blood—Jongin’s blood. Sehun’s stomach churned and he felt sick, so sick that his insides could bleed.

Adrian whimpered a little before he burst into a howl. The rest of the wolves joined him in unison, bellowing out a furious, mournful howl. Kai broke into a silent wail as he gripped the soil, fisting the loam before he threw his head up and cried out loud, screaming his heart out. Sehun didn’t realize his own tears were trickling down his cheeks as he watched Kai break apart. Raydon let out a snigger and that was when Kai’s shriek stopped abruptly as he lowered his head to meet Raydon’s sneer.

“Nobody, nobody interferes!” Raydon announced proudly. “I agree to your terms. If you win against me, they will all heed you. This a fight between _you_ and me _._ ” That was when Kai’s back arched forward and he shouted out a ferocious growl. Sehun couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw Kai’s spine prod out as his shirt started to rip. No, no. Sehun wanted to stop him, but he couldn’t move as Kai rose to his feet. His ears stuck out like a wolf’s and his fingers were crooked with claws as sharp as a wolf’s fangs. He stood taller than he usually is with his legs shaped like the hind legs of a wolf’s. He was a monster. The monster that had wanted to kill Sehun that day. Only twice as bigger, and twice as monstrous. Black like smoke with eyes as red as blood and fangs filling his mouth. He was a Berserker with all the perks of a demonic Vampire. As the shirt shed to the ground, Sehun’s eyes watered again when he saw Kai’s bones and ribs sticking out in crooked angles.

Raydon’s face wilted a little when Kai took a step forward. Adrian was vulnerable, but apparently Kai wasn’t. Sehun wasn’t sure it was even Kai that was standing before him. It looked like a demon escaped from Hell. There was a low thrum when Kai growled a little, advancing towards Raydon. For every step that Kai took, the ground rumbled a little. Raydon finally retrieved a step back, but yanked out a gun and pulled the trigger. Sehun gasped out a scream when the bullet plunged into Kai’s chest. It didn’t stop him. An ear-piercing roar escaped from Kai as he launched forward. Raydon shot him again and again, but to no avail. The entire place fell into chaos as Kai pounced onto Raydon. No one moved as they curled into a murderous brawl. Sehun glanced to the Vampires who stood still and then to the wolves that were ready with their paws firmly planted into the ground.

It was explosive. It was nothing like Sehun had ever witnessed before. The black Berserker chased Raydon, clawing him everywhere his hands could reach. Raydon moved and dodged most of the hit, but there was the fear of death in his face. Clearly he hadn’t anticipated this. No one had. Kai was just not himself. He was not the man who loved Sehun madly. When his last bullet penetrated Kai’s shoulder, Kai was thrown back and regained his stability with a hand and a knee on the ground. Raydon was a few feet away from him, his face bleeding with a gash on his cheek.

Kai didn’t fall back. Sehun felt crushed when Kai let out a belligerent growl and jolted forward. Raydon didn’t move. Instead, he dropped his gun and tossed Sehun a smile. He had lost and he had not seen this coming. But he was going to lose with pride. With love, knowing that he had lost Sehun to Kai a long time ago. He kept his emerald-green eyes on Sehun as Kai crashed on him, crushing Raydon beneath him as Kai latched his fangs to Raydon’s neck before ripping Raydon’s head off.

Sehun almost heaved when Kai raised his head, his animal-like mouth smeared with and his fangs dripping blood. It didn’t stop. Raydon was dead, defeated, but it hadn’t stopped. Kai’s violent red eyes were locked on Sehun now. Shit. Raydon had given up because none of them stood a chance anymore.

Kai abandoned Raydon’s headless body and vaulted forward in Sehun’s direction. Sehun was too stupefied to turn a hair as Kai launched at him, bounding off the ground. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to die this way. Sehun almost clenched his eyes when Adrian sprung and charged at Kai. That was it when all the wolves struck, all pouncing Kai at once, including Kai’s own father. Sehun weakly collapsed to his knees as he gawked at the wolves murderously attacking Kai. Kai flung the grey wolf with his fangs sunk into the wolf’s neck before he darted it at a tree. The wolf dropped to the ground with a silent whimper. There were at least ten of them and Kai retaliated with ten times their strength, leaving him facing Adrian alone.

Maybe the battle was never meant to be for Kai and Raydon. Maybe this was the end. Sehun forced himself to rise to his feet and clenched his fists at his sides. Adrian bared his teeth, menacingly snarling at Kai as he pranced, glaring at the Berserker. Kai looked a little weaker than earlier. Must be due to the bullets in his flesh. Then it erupted again as Kai staggered towards Adrian with a brutal speed. Adrian launched himself at Kai with all of his power and he leapt off the ground, pouncing onto Kai and pierced his fangs into Kai’s neck. An aggressive grunt broke out of Kai as he vigorously spun around, trying to throw Adrian off him. But he did not succeed when Adrian began to sink his fangs deeper into Kai’s neck. He’s going to rip Kai’s head off.

Lenz shot to his feet and ran towards Kai. He didn’t stop as he burst into a golden wolf, almost as big as Adrian before he jounced against Kai. Kai falls back to the ground with a thud with Lenz clawing into his chest, reaching for his heart.

Sehun stumbled and raced forward. “ _He_ killed Raydon!” he shouted at the Vampires. Raydon’s Vampires. “You fucking heed _him_ now! That was the deal! Help him!”

That did it. The Vampires jolted in Kai’s way at once. Sehun knew this was a bad idea, but he can’t stop Adrian and Lenz on his own. One of them grabbed Adrian’s back, fur and all, and hauled him off Kai while another two yanked Lenz off Kai’s chest before smashing him against the railings on the house’s veranda. The Vampires bordered Kai defensively.

“Don’t hurt them!” Sehun blurted out as he tumbled to the ground and almost crawled to Kai who was lying there, barely alive. “Kai…” he let out with tears blinding his sight. He raised a hand to Kai’s ruined, bloody chest, but he couldn’t touch him. Kai wasn’t healing. The bullets must have been laced with Vervain and Wolfsbane. “Kai? Kai, come on. Please, this isn’t you.”

As if on cue, Kai’s monstrous hand came around Sehun’s neck and clutched it. His black thick nails began to penetrate the veins in his neck. “Kai,” Sehun rasped out, choking on his sob. “This… isn’t you.”

Adrian lurched for Kai again and so did Lenz. Sehun threw his hand up to stop them and they did. “Kai,” he whispered again as Kai started to kneel up. His red eyes were only filled with murderous intentions. Not love, not passion. Sehun couldn’t even find himself in those eyes. A tear rivulet rolled down to Sehun’s jaw as his hands clung onto Kai’s wrist. “I should have told you that I love you. Not because you… imprinted on me. Or because I have no other choice. But because you’re you,” he muttered, wincing a little when Kai growled, his hand tightening around Sehun’s neck. “And I’m never going to leave you.”

Kai stared into Sehun’s glistening eyes for a moment. Then his grip around Sehun’s neck loosened before his hand fell and he simply collapsed to the ground again, unconsciously. “Kai?” Sehun gasped in a frenzy, pressing a hand to Kai’s ripped open chest.

“The bullets,” Selvyn said, pushing through the Vampires. Sehun hadn’t noticed him there. “We need to take them out. Quick.” Sehun could not bring himself to protest, but Selvyn didn’t wait for Sehun’s approval as he plunged his hand into Kai’s body where the bullets had penetrated. Slowly, the wolves surrounded them, but they weren’t attacking. Sehun sat back. It throbbed where Kai had clutched him, but he gave little attention to that as he stroked Kai’s mane-like hair. The colour was returning to him as the black faded. His bones were retracting, but his claws remained black.

Sehun glanced up to Adrian with a woeful look. The wolf’s eyes were in pain and he was terribly hurt, too. But he didn’t linger as he wended his way to the Jongin’s dead body on the ground. Sehun cradled Kai’s head as Selvyn yanked the bullets out. Adrian curled around Jongin’s cold body as if to keep him warm and nestled his head in the crook of Jongin’s neck, letting out a soft whimper. Eventually, the wolves joined Adrian and they sat in a circle around Jongin. Kai might be their Alpha, but Adrian had been their rightful First Alpha all along and Jongin had been their Alpha before. They mourned with their First Alpha as his mate laid there, dead and unredeemable.

 

* * *

 

Sehun had always thought every story had an end. Be it happy or tragic. But maybe some stories just didn’t _need_ an ending. Especially his. He had an eternal, immortal life. And it will be filled with innumerable tragedies, insufferable sadness, unbearable pain, but he knew now that he will be able to endure them all with even just a speck of happiness if he was with Kai. Nobody knew what fate had in store for them, but that was the most beautiful thing about life. He will get to find out.

He guessed there wasn’t a happy ending to his story or Adrian’s or even Kai’s. But none of them were going to give up.

“You sure you want to do this?” Adrian didn’t seem like he meant what he was asking. He looked more soulless than ever. But he’ll survive. Men like him always do. Sehun was glad Adrian had the strength and the willpower to even move a mountain. It had been weeks and Adrian seemed to be coping his loss. Of course, he had to. He still had a son. He still needed to make sure Lenz got through. It hadn’t been eternal for him and Jongin, but the love Adrian had for Jongin was going to last forever even if death did them apart. That, Sehun envied of Adrian. To be loved like that. To _love_ like that.

“No point in staying, Adrian,” Kai sighed as he descended down the steps of the veranda and smiled at Sehun when he reached the ground. “I think I’m ready to leave,” he said, curling an arm around Sehun’s waist. Kai was the one who mourned Jongin’s death the most. A part of him had been ripped away forever and nobody can fill that hole, not even Sehun. From the moment they had been in their mother’s womb to the moment Jongin had died, Kai loved his brother. Maybe not in the way Jongin wanted to be loved, but in the purest way possible. Kai had lost his other half, a part of his soul. And he just wanted to leave everything behind now. Sehun understood that Kai didn’t want to relive any of the memories he had here. Especially the ones he shared with Jongin. “We’re going to… travel the world. Look for more adventures, more trouble.” He scoffed and brushed his forehead on Sehun’s temple.

He was also doing this for Sehun. He was leaving his pack, his home, his family behind for Sehun. Last night when Sehun asked him why he was willing to leave, he said, “The pack, my own family didn’t pull me back to sanity that day, Sehun. You did. They wanted to just… kill me. Yes, I would have preferred that to you foolishly sweet-talking to me to make human again like an idiot, but… you still clung onto that hope nobody else had.”

Sehun didn’t know how to mourn Jongin’s death. He had once loved Jongin, too. But Sehun couldn’t mourn for him. He couldn’t even believe that Jongin was gone.

“Who knows? Maybe I’ll meet more of his psychotic ex-boyfriends,” Kai laughed jokingly and Sehun scowled at him.

Adrian leaned against the railings and exhaled a heavy breath. “All right. This is your home. You’re always welcomed back.”

Kai nodded. “I’ll come home when your boy is being Chosen.”

Adrian shrugged. “I doubt it. That Arkyn kid is a personal favourite around here.”

Kai agreed with him. “You’re going anywhere?”

With a shake of his head, Adrian smiled. There was no life in that smile. “No. I’m thinking about sticking around for a moment. Teach Lenz. Let him hang out with the pack. Maybe move to my old house.”

“Well, good luck.” Kai climbed up a step and pulled Adrian into half a hug. It had been awkward between them ever since the funeral. Adrian felt sorry for almost killing Kai, but Kai had told him he did what he was supposed to do. In fact, Kai was a little mad that Adrian had let Sehun _talk_ to that monster he was. “What about Raydon’s Vampires?”

“They’ll be around in case you’ll ever need them.” Adrian assured him with a smirk.

“You think I’ll ever need them?” Kai mirrored his smirk.

“Your boyfriend attracts trouble like how sugar lumps attract ants.”

Sehun cringed a little. Kai snickered. “You’re absolutely right. He _is_ a sugar lump.” Kai pecked on Sehun’s lips before Sehun shoved him back. “You’re going to be all right, right?” he asked Adrian who gave a curt nod of his head. “Tell Lenz I said bye.”

Lenz, however, wasn’t coping as well as Adrian was. He had been locked up in his room for weeks and when he was out, he only went running with the pack, especially Arkyn and his sister.

“Will do.”

Sehun said his goodbyes before he climbed into the car’s driver’s seat. Kai latched the door closed and let out a heavy sigh as Sehun started the engine. “We don’t have to leave, Kai.” Sehun said, stroking Kai’s thigh.

Kai flashed him a smile before cupping Sehun’s cheek. “I want to leave, Sehun. This place is just… Well, I just want to go somewhere. With you. And maybe not come back at all.”

“We’ll come back,” Sehun muttered, leaning in to brush his lips on Kai’s. “But first, Bali?”

“Always wanted to go there.” Kai chuckled and kissed Sehun full on mouth. His nails were still black and there was a ring of red around his black eyes. Maybe this was just who Kai was now and Sehun will just have to take the risk.

Some stories didn’t have an ending. They didn’t need to.

 

* * *

 

“You should come by tonight. It’s mutton stew night,” Nadya offered with a dopey smile on her tanned face. “Arkyn makes a killer stew.”

“Oh, she’s not even exaggerating. I really do.” Arkyn snorted as he draped an arm over Lenz’s shoulders while they weaved their way home through the forest. His new friends were really trying to lift Lenz’s mood for a while now, but it just seemed impossible. Lenz was just waiting for the day when all this misery will just dissipate.

“Thanks,” Lenz muttered. “But if Arkyn’s cooking, I’ll pass.”

“You insult me, mate.” Arkyn rubbed his knuckles into Lenz’s scalp before he heaved a breath. “Come on. Come over.”

“So that I can watch you be all lovey-dovey with Vinn. Pass again.”

Arkyn turned a little red as he blushed. It was nice to see him happy now that Vinn was fully recovered and according Nadya, Vinn was beginning to accept Arkyn. Eventually, they might even mate. Lenz, on the other hand, didn’t have a clue whether what he did with bloody Skylar Sinclair in the woods would count as mating. He sure as hell hoped not. Skylar’s father had killed Jongin. Lenz didn’t know if he could ever forgive Skylar, even though he had done nothing. Selvyn was different, though. He was starting to become part of his own family. But Selvyn was leaving soon, too. To enjoy his newfound freedom.

Lenz sighed at last. “I’ll be there,” he said and started to jog towards his house after waving them goodbye.

When he reached home, he found his father and Selvyn crouched on the porch. Selvyn was grinning from ear to ear as he helped Adrian pick up the shattered flower pot from the ground.

“What happened here?” Lenz asked casually and his father turned his head around with one of his knees planted to the soil.

“Well, he has butterfingers.” Adrian said, shrugging as he cupped the spent soil from the flower pot.

“I was just trying to move the pot,” Selvyn sighed.

“Did you eat anything since morning?” his father inquired. Lenz stuck his hands in the pockets of his hoodie and shook his head.

“Is Uncle Kai gone?”

“Yeah.”

Lenz was relieved that Kai was gone. But mostly he was glad he didn’t need to see Sehun again. All of his loss, all of his problems had only been caused by Sehun and Lenz wasn’t sure he could ever forgive him either. “I’m going inside.”

“I’ll go grab a bag.” Adrian said and shot up to his feet before he hurried into the house. Lenz glanced to Selvyn who was still grinning at the broken pot.

“So when are _you_ leaving?” Lenz asked and Selvyn raised his head.

“Oh, um… I… don’t know.” He stood up and clapped his hands together.

Lenz smiled at him. Selvyn had been the only one cheering Lenz up when he was home. Maybe having him around wasn’t such a bad idea. “You don’t wanna leave, do you?”

That made Selvyn blush. “Can’t I stay a little longer?”

Lenz scoffed, but he wanted Selvyn to stay a little longer. Everything Selvyn did was just heart-warming these days. Especially at nights, Selvyn would just tell Lenz a bunch of crappy bedtime stories and make him laugh. He was also going around Adrian, helping him with whatever he needed, relentlessly trying to lift Adrian’s mood as well. In spite of having lost his own father, Selvyn didn’t seem so saddened about it. In fact, he seemed relieved. “Well, I don’t know. Why do you want to? You’re free now.”

Selvyn bit his lower lip, tucking a lock of red hair behind his ear. “I just love hanging around here. With you.”

Lenz licked his smirking lips and nodded his head. “Is it because of your little crush on me?”

Selvyn’s eyes widened as his jaw fell slacking. “Wh-what?”

“Oh, come on. It’s fine. I’m not that bothered by it.” Although he did rut Selvyn’s brother in the woods like a dog in heat—buried between Skylar’s legs as he humped him, with the friction of the erections shoving him over the edge while Skylar moaned into his mouth, his hand gripping Lenz’s hair and nails digging into Lenz’s back. Lenz wasn’t smitten by Selvyn, but the attention seemed nice. “Hang out a bit.”

“Wait, you think I have a crush on… _you?_ ” Selvyn asked, looking a little surprised.

Lenz’s eyebrows furrowed. “Yeah? Well, don’t you?”

That brought about the loudest laugh Selvyn had ever laughed. He looked genuinely amused. “You’re so full of yourself, Lenz.” He dropped back to the ground to pick up the flower along with its roots.

Lenz was a little baffled. “So you don’t have a crush on me?”

“You’re hot. Really hot. But you’re not my type.” He sniggered as he rose to his feet.

Lenz was just insulted. “Why would you want to hang around then?!”

“Well, I wanna help you out. Make you feel better,” he said, walking over to the veranda. “But you’re definitely not the main reason I want to stay, you delusional, narcissistic numpty.” He laughed again and came to a halt when the door sprung open.

“Whoa,” Adrian gasped when he almost bumped onto Selvyn. “Careful.”

“Sorry,” Selvyn was grinning again. With that weird look. He was so short and tiny before Adrian that he had to look high up to meet Adrian’s eyes. Or maybe he was looking at Adrian’s lips. Lenz couldn’t tell. “Where should I put this?”

“Maybe we can find a pot,” Adrian sighed and Selvyn nodded immediately with hearts in his eyes.

 _Fuck me,_ Lenz thought.

“Lenz?” his father called and Lenz snapped his gaping mouth shut. “Why are you still standing there?”

“Uh,” Lenz looked to Selvyn again. The boy was _definitely_ not smitten with Lenz—that was for sure. “I wanna go for another run.” He rubbed the back of his neck. He didn’t wait for his father’s response as he burst into a sprint.

He didn’t need to worry too much over it. Selvyn was young, too young and probably that was why he was infatuated with a man twice his age. It will wear off. Besides, Lenz was certain Adrian was never going to move on from Jongin. Their love was forever. His father was a wise man and Selvyn was just fooling himself.

Lenz didn’t stop running until he reached the abandoned graveyard. He came here more often now. He didn’t know why, but it felt peaceful here.

He descended down the hill and slowly dragged his feet to his mother’s gravestone. He didn’t know how much his father had loved his mother. But it didn’t matter. Whether Adrian moved on or not, Lenz will eventually have to.

He stared at the engraved gravestone for a long stretch of time, wondering if his mother was truly in peace. Then he muttered, “I’m going to be all right, mom.”

He wanted to receive a reply. But he knew he wouldn’t. So he smiled. So he’ll live. So he’ll be all right.

Then the subtle scent was carried to him by the wind. It didn’t even take him a second to recognize that scent. He had it memorized along with the skin of the owner of the scent. Lenz turned around, sucking in a shaky breath.

Skylar had his hands plunged into his jeans’ pockets and a faint smile lurking about the corners of his beautiful pink lips. “Hey, stranger,” he said in a very low murmur as he crossed the distance between them. “I’m not going to run or hide anymore. I tried. But I think I’ll become deranged and go totally mental after some weeks without you,” he took Lenz’s face into his hands. “I’m sorry, but I’m… I’m _fucking_ obsessed with you, Delenz Prescott.”

Lenz didn’t move or respond. He just stared. Into those two pools of green. Because he knew deep down, Skylar Sinclair was going to fuck up his life.

 

End.

* * *

 

(A/N) Check out [Atrox, The Damned.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/5265752) (hired killer!au) and [Lusus Naturae](http://archiveofourown.org/works/5291267). Also, wrote another Jongkai fic—[Sightless Anathema](http://archiveofourown.org/works/7286098). Follow me on instagram @radianzze and on twitter @samegaygame !!


	40. New fic

Just a surprise fic! Check it out! >>> **[Our Own Broken World](http://archiveofourown.org/works/7467261)**


	41. King's Lost Prince.

Guys, check out my new sekai fic if you want :D It's Evil King!Kai, Assassin/Prince!Sehun, bondage and fantasy. >>> **[King's Lost Prince](http://archiveofourown.org/works/7592749)**


	42. Artful Sins

So... check out the new wolf!au/shapeshifter!au, arrangedmarriage!au, mpreg!au fic?? >>> <http://archiveofourown.org/works/9109522> :D


	43. Hard Copy

_Hello, dear DUE readers!! It's been a while. So, I have some good news. Hard copies of DUE will be available soon. Of course, in order to abide by the laws and regulations, the names and certain characteristics of EXO members in this fic will be changed (I hope this would not be a big problem for you). The story will also be edited and modified to a significant extent (for the better—don't worry, I think you'd like these changes) and there will be additional chapters. Many people have been imploring me to make hard copies of DUE available, so I'm glad to announce that it will finally be happening!_

_Answer this → **[POLL](http://www.strawpoll.me/14648056)**  ← to let me know if you're interested or not! :D_


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